Tale of the Sky Maiden
by LastationLover5000
Summary: In the most dire hour of the Fairy Tail Guild's history the attack of Acnologia on the Tenrō Island, something goes horribly wrong. Separated from her friends of certain death, the young Slayer will have to learn to stand on her own two feet and help the fractured guild remain strong. This is the tale of the Sky Maiden, Wendy Marvell!
1. Breath of Ruin

**Chapter 1 - Breath of Ruin**  
**Written by LastationLover5000 and Demod20**

* * *

The Apocalypse incarnate.

That's how it felt seeing the Black Winged Dragon up close. Every single Mage of Fairy Tail present felt the chill of terror rush up and down their spines. A nightmare had been attracted to the smell of battle on the Tenrō Island, their enemies -Black Grimoire- already long gone. Left at less than their best, the beast let loose a howl more powerful than a hurricane's gale.

All individuals standing by the beach of their founding master's home were varying stages of recovery. The azure etched wings of the avian headed creature raised upward and slammed down, causing the land mass to quake and the sea adjacent to billow back. The blistering air stung their bandaged bodies, forcing them to raise arms to protect their eyes from further harm.

But deep down, they knew it was a futile gesture.

"H-He's here!" Gildarts stuttered out, his prosthetic shaking in place and the wounds long since healed throbbed at the point of his last encounter with the fell beast. "Now...of all times...this is the worst!"

"Are you kidding me?!" Gajeel croaked out, his bandaged body already ebbing sweat as he soaked in the enormity of the creature mounted upon the isle's beach. "How are we supposed to fight that?!"

"You can't," The Ace of Fairy Tail replied, his eyes narrowing up at the vapor breath escaping the behemoth nightmare. "There's no escaping this…

"No…" Wendy Marvell despaired, falling to her knees as her skin paled and her eyes shrank at the sight of the monster turning its gaze towards her. "I'm...going...to die?"

"Everyone!" Makarov Dreyar yelled, stepping forward, and throwing an arm from his diminutive sized frame at the guild's best behind him. "Get back to safety! There is hope for escape yet!"

"Old man…" Laxus gasped out, his eyes widening at the small back of his dwarf of a grandfather's actions. "Don't tell me you're…?!"

"This is bullshit!" Natsu cried, slamming a fiery hand into a bandaged fist. "Gramps, let us help fight! This is why we have Slayer Magic! On your own you'll-"

"THERE IS NO TIME TO ARGUE! LIVES ARE ON THE LINE!"

Makarov's words, louder and harsher than expected, cut through any fighting spirit Dragneel had at his disposal. Stunned to the point of speechlessness, the light red haired man could only gawk as a massive silhouette grew in place to the lean bodied midget he once was. A colossus in size, he even matched the immense grim reaper in size, though the bandages remained over his now towering muscular figure; a reminder that this was likely his last act of Guild Master.

"NOW! EVERYONE!" Makarov bellowed, slamming his upper body into Acnologia, wrapping his around its bird-like neck and pushed him away from the rest. "LIVE! GROW OLD! LAUGH! AND DO NOT LET THIS OLD MAN'S DEATH BE IN VAIN!"

The Guild known for surviving together, through thick and thin, wept at this. Gildarts led the charge, hailing the timid and the uncertain behind him. Those that trailed behind were the terror stricken Wendy, led by the hand by her Exceed partner -Charle-. Ahead of her was the Salamander, eyes shut tight but tears never ceasing descent of his face. Laxus looked over his shoulder mournfully, knowing this would be the last time he'd see his grandfather.

And, as they disappeared out of sight, Makarov grinned.

Whether the beast could tell what he was feeling or not didn't matter. Seconds after he loosened his grip unconsciously, the Dragon lifted his body upward, deftly hoisting him off the ground while standing on its own hind legs.

"Hrrrrrrrrrrr!" Makarov grimaced between clenched teeth, eyes bulging as he felt himself flung around like a burlap sack. To and fro, his body whipped about, a streak of bandaged muscle and bruised skin.

Seeing this didn't work, the Winged Apocalypse slammed its talons into his unguarded sides, piercing his skin. Letting his arms slip as he let out a gurgling cry, the creature hissed with malicious glee. Thrashing him into the beach with the force of a bomb, a tidal wave erupted from the beach's seaside while splitting apart the sandy ground beneath them.

Bleeding between his teeth, Makarov couldn't suppress chuckles escaping his mouth up at the massive beast. The blank eyes of the avian shaped creature stared down, a damning light swirling within the back of its throat.

"This...is a good end...for a Master...eh, First?" Makarov grated out, eyes closing as an overcast of pure silver began to overtake his face. "I am content. I lived a full life and I saved my family. I couldn't ask for a more noble finale-"

Interrupting his line of thought came a sudden explosion of fire cracking against the side of Acnologia's head. It didn't so much as budge him, but the Dragon did cease its swelling magic it was preparing to use on the massive old man. Craning its neck up, it'd see a bandaged figure ebbing flames.

And he wasn't alone.

"Gramps!" Natsu crowed out with a raised, infernal fist. "We can't leave without you!"

"No, you fools!" Makarov croaked out with panicked eyes. "I am not worth it! Leave now while you still-!"

"Master!" Erza Scarlet cried out, raising a sword towards him. "I seem to recall *every* Mage of Fairy Tail has value. Or did you forget what we did to Phantom Lord for Lucy?"

"We aren't leaving you behind, Old Man," Laxus proclaimed his body igniting into a fierce mantle of lightning. "Don't like it? Then I guess we're all banished from the Guild! And that means we don't have to listen to stupid orders like leaving you behind!"

"E-Everyone…" Makarov stammered as his eyes began to water.

Acnologia released a damning howl towards the returning quarry it had set out to kill. Despite the earlier terrifying scream, a just as mighty cacophony of cries was returned. Dozens of mages leaped into the fray on their master's behalf, releasing hundreds of magical explosions of all kinds across its scaled body.

The devil swung its arms around, swatting at his foes like hands to gnats. While some were thrown back by the force of its clawed limbs, others more tenacious appeared.

Gildarts landed a punch to one arm with his prosthetic, leading to Laxus flying headbutt into its exposed jaw to make it meet up. Following that, the two most powerful men of Fairy Tail drew back their legs and sent a shattering blast of white and yellow energy to send it scraping over the sea away from the island.

"Vernier!" Wendy chanted, using what magic she had to boost Laxus, Gajeel, Natsu and herself. "Ille Vernier!"

After the second enchantment was used, the four Slayers swiftly took to the edge of the beach. While the beast snarled at the continuous bombardment of elements, weapons and other miscellaneous spells, its blank eyes fixated on the enhanced four Slayers. Through its pupiless gaze it's reflected the colors of their aura, their chests swelling with energy…

...and then, a massive torrent of power cutting a swathe through the ocean towards it.

Combined, it detonated with the force of a bomb that would have leveled the island. A tumultuous rolling sphere of burning, electrified, razor filled wind pushed back the body of water and dented it to the shallower part of the seaside floor.

The light caused many on looking and fighting mages to cover their eyes, wincing at it. The shockwave that came after even brought some of them off their feet, while others barely standing still despite it all.

But, a whooshing blur of black threw back the glare of light and water even further. Outstretched arms and curled talons revealed a gaping mouth that let loose a voice something akin to a gurgle and a howl. It became evident what it was when Gildarts gkared ahead with a knowing look.

"He's laughing at us…" He spoke lowly. "Just like I thought. This didn't even faze him…"

"D-Dammit!" Natsu swore aloud, heaving heavily from the exertion along with the other mages standing defiantly on their feet. "I put all I had into it...and he didn't even budge?"

"What's the point of us being Slayers if we can't even dent one lousy Dragon?!" Gajeel growled out with balled fists at his side, indicating his indignation.

Before Wendy's horrified gaze, she saw the Black Winged Apocalypse lunge straight towards the sky. High above the island, where none could reach they'd see a second Sun glaring down at then; which they soon realized was just the shine of their imminent enemy's magic about to be released.

As a feeling of dread was about to commence, Lucy held out a hand for Natsu to hold despite the current predicament. With water in her eyes, and a sad smile, she spoke with nothing but love for her friend.

"Let's go home, Natsu."

Smiling back, somberly, the Salamander took her hand into his and nodded with a simple, "Yeah."

Endeared through this act of mutual kinship, Erza took hold of Natsu's other hand. Linked in soon by Gray, Juvia and then Levy with Gajeel, a circle of united love for each other replaced the dread that was festering within them. It ended with Wendy, grabbing Charle's paw and reaching around to another's when her eyes looked up-

And she faltered in reaching for the last hand.

What she saw was no longer a swirling ball of light but a curling pair of wings within a inferno. The center of it she could make out as a ghastly wave of death, all screaming out to her inevitable demise. Grimly staring down at her the young Slayer shook in place and couldn't hear her Exceed trying to shake her out of her own self imposed paralysis of shock.

But by then it was already happening.

A pillar of silver roared below from Acnologia's gaping mouth. Streaming down into the center of the isle, an overwhelming dome of erasing energy bore fruit from its epicenter. Doubling and even tripling the size of the four Slayer combined breath spell, any hint of the best of Fairy Tail existing was soon dispelled.

The island and its inhabitants were gone, with only the rolling tides acknowledging the space that was once present.

Howling, the devil split the heavens with the might of its voice. Distant spectators of the Magic Council would see its behemoth silhouette soon lurch and then spirit away into the horizon; leaving the once sacred birth of Fairy Tail in complete oblivion.

* * *

The force of the explosion from Acnologia knocked Wendy Marvell out cold. Her body was lifeless, floating in the churning currents of ocean, still being rocked by the strength of Acnologia's breath attack. Clinging to the girl for dear life was the diminutive form of Charle, who had been protected by Wendy's small body. The tiny Exceed struggled to keep herself and her friend afloat; from every direction, she could see only water — massive waves rising high, blocking her sight of the horizon.

Charle was beginning to feel terrified; they'd escaped Acnologia only to be fighting against the immense power of the ocean.

The massive waves pushed Wendy's unconscious body and Charle to and fro, the Exceed helpless against the force of the ocean. Acnologia's strength was something to be feared. His breath attack, and its resulting destruction, had created an effect on the nearby waters that could only be compared to a severe storm. Sweeping upwards, the waves crashed down, dragging Charle and Wendy underneath the frigid blackness. Charle struggled upward, forcing herself to fight against her own body and drag Wendy back to the surface. Bobbing her head upwards, she gasped for air, searching desperately for anything to use as support.

Nothing.

She began to panic again.

_How do I get out of this...? _thought Charle desperately. _I can't let Wendy die out here. If there's no one here to protect her...then I will! _Her small eyes, fighting the sting of the salt water, continued their desperate search; once again, she came up empty. The surge lifted Charle and Wendy up high, before dropping them again, merely reaffirming the power of the ocean and their own powerlessness.

After what seemed like hours of seeing nothing and getting nowhere, Charle pooled together her magical power; from her back, she sprouted feathery, angelic wings, a magic common to all Exceed. Water churned around Charle, separate from the swirling waves and crashing surges. With immense effort, the small cat-like creature pulled Wendy out of the ocean, rushing high into the sky at the fastest speed she could manage. Free from the waves, Charle took only a moment to take in the sky, before searching the horizon. There was nothing but endless sea; merely taking to the heavens had improved their situation only marginally.

_Wendy...I will protect you...so just hold on...!_ Charle focused entirely on the Aera magic she was generating. _Max Speed! _With as much effort as Charle could, she tore across the ocean. White and blue became a blur for the small Exceed; she knew she was taking a risk. Expending all of her magic like this in the hopes of finding somewhere dry? It was almost impossible, but Fairy Tail banked on impossible odds, and she would not let Wendy die here.

Had she been flying for minutes? Hours? Had it been a day? Charle didn't know but she pushed on, even as her wings began to flicker and fade. In her eyes, something mixed in with the colours of blue and white. The faded hues of blue and green? Charle slowed to a stop, her wings vanishing at this exact unfortunate moment. She hurtled towards the ocean again, keeping a tight hold on Wendy; the stinging cold of the ocean familiar at this point. However, to their fortune, Acnologia's attack had not reached here, and the water was calm.

"I...see it..." she spluttered between coughs of salt water. And so she did. It looked like a small island. Was it inhabited? She had no idea, but it was close enough to swim towards. The Exceed paddled there, desperately keeping Wendy's head above the water level as she swam. It took an excessive amount of effort, but with the ocean calm, Charle was able to pull herself and Wendy onto the shore of the island. Surveying the island, she saw that it was ridiculously small, and uninhabited.

Exhausted, the Exceed laid an ear towards Wendy's chest; she was breathing, but it was ragged and shallow. Worried, Charle placed her paws on the young girl's diaphragm and pushed. Forcefully and repetitively, she pushed, until Wendy's body gave a jerk, a cough, and water spurted from her mouth. Her breathing steadied itself, and Wendy slept. Charle breathed a sigh of relief, and collapsed by Wendy's side.

"We're...alive..."

* * *

**The Next Morning**

The sound of sniffling woke Charle. Rubbing her eyes with her paws, she looked around and saw Wendy, huddled a short distance away. She was hugging her legs, her body shaking; it was obvious she was crying. Charle got up, shaking sand out her fur and walking over Wendy. Tentatively, she reached towards the girl's knee; at contact, Wendy jerked away, raising her head to reveal reddened eyes where tears were flowing freely.

"C-Charle?"

"Wendy..." Charle could only mutter her companion's name, not knowing what to say. It took her as a great surprise when Wendy pulled her into her arms, still sobbing hysterically. Charle was flabbergasted, muttering incomprehensible words. The Exceed was unable to get a proper word out of herself, or to get Wendy to say anything beyond unintelligible blubbering. "It's alright, Wendy..." Charle reached up to stroke Wendy's azure coloured hair.

"It's not...!" Wendy wailed. "We...we left everyone...everyone died back there...!" She was shuddering violently, her sobs increasing. "What have we done...Charle...? Lucy...Natsu...Erza...everyone..."

"I know..." The tears began to well up in Charle's eyes as well; she'd spent so much time the previous day trying to save Wendy that she hadn't had the time to properly address the fact that their comrades and their guild had gone up in a blinding flash of light. At this point, she would give anything even to hear an "Aye sir!" from Happy, just to hear that familiar voice that was always there. The two of them began to cry in unison, and their wails filled the silence of the otherwise tiny island. They cried without shame, and without stopping, mourning their lost comrades with all of their heart.

Hiccuping, Wendy finally spoke. "W-What do we do now...? Where a-are we, Charle?"

"I-I don't know..." replied Charle, realising for the first time that she truly had no idea where she'd taken them. "I was so...desperate to get you somewhere safe...t-that I just flew." She rubbed Wendy's eyes, wiping the tears away, and using her tail to accomplish the same for herself. "B-But...I'd think that everyone would w-want us to live..." The shaking from their sobbing hadn't subsided, but the tears has finally ceased. Her voice was becoming stronger. "We should get back to Fiore...and tell everyone what happened. We can't afford to just sit here."

Wendy nodded slowly. "Y-You're right..." She knew this, but she desperately wanted to keep crying. She felt like it was her fault that everyone had died. She let go. When everyone stood their ground against that dragon, she had _let go_. Wendy wasn't there with everyone when Acnologia had dealt the finishing blow, and at the expense of everyone else's lives, she'd survived. "We can't...dishonour everyone's memories like this." The young Dragon Slayer forced herself to her feet, Charle still in her arms.

"Alright...Charle!" Her voice was still weak, and she looked shaky. "We're...going to head ho..!" Unprompted, Wendy fell back towards the ground, dizziness overtaking her. Exhaustion and a lack of food and water had overtaken her. Quickly, Wendy's world went black.

* * *

**A/N:  
Demod20: **_So this was a spur-of-the-moment kind of story idea I struck up with my co-author. When he came to it with me, I realized how much untapped story potential there is in the middle of a timeskip; especially when so much happens but we only scrape the surface with it. With Wendy being in the center of it, now Fairy Tail has a chance of being more than just "the rest of the characters that aren't Main Characters,". With Wendy at its center, they can grow, improve and help flesh out the rest of the world while developing in their own way. Who knows where we can take this ambitious story, far into the future? I'm genuinely excited to see what other people think as I've only written One Shots and a halfhearted serious/parody story that was a Crossover; nothing truly to this extent. Can't wait to see your thoughts in the comments below, and to write more for you all to read!_

**LastationLover5: **_Now this is an oddity, and it makes me wonder where my life is going. I'm writing what is going to become a longterm Fairy Tail fanfic. Y'all can blame a good friend of mine for suggesting this idea to me, as I love Wendy Marvell — she is my favourite character in all of Fairy Tail — and he jokingly suggested that I write a fic like this. Little did he know, I have no free time but I do have a partner in crime willing to help make this damn thing work. So this is the first chapter of what is going to become a Wendy-centric fanfic that covers the seven years of Fairy Tail being missing, and perhaps even more, as Wendy fights to protect her guild's reputation and accept the loss of her friends! We'll also see more of the side characters now that the Spotlight Stealing Squad is gone. We'll see you all soon, hope you guys can't wait for the next chapter!_


	2. Friend

**Chapter 2 - Friend**

**Written by LastationLover5000 and Demod20**

* * *

_It towered over her. Standing before Wendy was a shadow black mass; a gargantuan demon composed entirely of quivering blackness. Its eyes, a staggering pure white, gleamed, contrasting against the darkness that constituted the entirety of its form. The visage of this creature — constantly shifting, phasing, and never able to be clearly defined by her mind — terrified the young girl even moreso than its size, and she found herself rooted to the spot._

_Then the entity roared. And the sound left the girl petrified more still; it was horrible, an unearthly shout from another world. Wendy's body trembled, her legs felt like jelly; when the beast turned its attention to her, Wendy's only action was to let out a barely stifled whimper, tears flooding her eyes. The shadow demon's clawed hand reached downward, snatching Wendy up from the ground, causing her eyes to widen with shock and surprise. Squirming, the girl looked to and fro for help, shivering in _

_horrified fear._

_Wendy was lowered towards a gaping maw — a clear, vivid red amid the filtering shadows — steaming hot breath impacting Wendy's struggling form; she could smell the sweet, rotting stench of a carnivore. The tongue, dark purple, reached outwards, twisting and bending around her body as it drew her into the cavernous mouth. Unable to fight against the strength of the muscle holding pulling her firmly towards the creature's throat, Wendy accepted a terrifying fact._

_She was going to die.  
_

* * *

Gasping heavily, Wendy sat bolt upright in bed, her body sweating, feeling as if she'd just run a mile. Blinking rapidly, the girl glanced around; she was laying in a bed, tucked away in some strange room that she didn't recognise. But she was mercifully alive. Whatever that had been, it was nothing more than a nightmare. Wendy placed a hand to her chest, desperately reaffirming the fact that she was indeed still alive when she felt her heart pulsating madly.

_I...I'm alive...but where am I..._?

Wendy's eyes scanned the area; it was a small room with stonework flooring and walls that had the feeling of being cleaned once every few days. It was dimly lit, but as her eyes adjusted, Wendy could see it was sparsely decorated. The room hardly felt lived in. Moving her hand around the bed, Wendy felt it was empty. Wherever she was, Charle was nowhere to be found, and this simply made Wendy even more uneasy.

"Charle!" Wendy called out into the gloom.

No response.

"Charle! Where are you?!" Wendy's voice, stronger than it had been back on the island where she'd awoken before, was tinged with panic and desperation. Her call was greeted by unbroken silence. Wendy slid out of the bed, her bare feet touching the cold stones of the floor. This was, besides her voice, the only noise she'd heard since waking up and it did little to comfort her. Standing at her full height, she was able to get a slightly better view of the room, she could see in closer relief the scattered pieces of furniture. To her left was the door that she assumed led out; it was sturdy, made of mahogany — or so it smelled to the young Slayer.

Wendy realised that she still found if difficult to stand; her legs were rebelling against her, the young girl's muscles weak. She felt much older than she actually was, but now wasn't the time to dwell on that. Wendy hobbled to the door as quick as her weakened body would allow, and it opened with the ease of turning the handle. She walked out into an empty corridor — made of the same stone that her room had been constructed with — and realised that she was still very much alone.

_I have to find Charle..._ Wendy's thoughts were frantic. _Everyone else is gone...please don't leave me too, Charle...!_

Wendy turned left, edging herself along the wall. She proceeded by touch, due to a lack of any real light, and her eyes adjusted to the further darkness. Several doors adorned the wall of the corridor, spaced sporadically from one another; an inactive part of Wendy's brain had to assume this was a residential floor. "Charle!" Wendy shouted again the name of her companion, the response once again being silent. "Charle, are you here? Where are you?!"

Continuing to navigate the hallway, Wendy could see a faint shine of light clinging to the side of the wall. The blue-haired girl's eyes fell upon an arched window; the sunlight was practically blinding after the darkness of the hallway. Giving her eyes time to recover, Wendy reached the window and looked into the outside world. A city spread out below her, initially appearing as a massive, scattered jumble of shapes she couldn't immediately discern. White buildings jutted out to the sky in between flecks of green, yet she could see hints of smaller, more homely dwellings closer to the window. Roads twisted and looped around the town like rivers of stone, and Wendy could see the bustling shapes of people.

Wherever she was, at least it was civilisation. This was a slight relief to Wendy, who turned away from the window...

...to come face to face with a child.

The child was a head shorter than Wendy, with dark crimson hair, done up in a ponytail, staring at her with exuberant blue eyes. She was, if anything, brighter than the light pouring out of the window behind Wendy, dressed in a simple shirtdress of pinks and blues. She tilted her head quizzically, owlish eyes blinking in rapid succession.

"Um..." Wendy was taken aback by the strange child. Brown eyes stared into blue, and she tried to phrase the question without sounding impolite. "Who _are_ you?"

"I'm Sherria!" replied the girl brightly. "Everyone is looking for you!"

* * *

**Deserted Island  
**  
Hope.

It's what Doranbolt - code named 'Mest' while infiltrating Fairy Tail on behalf of the Magic Council - felt upon finding a faint trace of Ethernano within the ocean. Where the mass of Aura that made up the infamous guild of Fiore's mages had once presided, they and their sacred island of Tenrō had vanished in a single breath spell from the Black Winged Apocalypse. Once it had dispatched its quarry, Acnologia had left to the horizon, leaving no trace of its vector nor an idea where it was intending to be next.

That was, after combing the sea for the following day, they had found _something_. It was essentially a trace of unusual magic that was discharged in the air, and dispersed into the tumultuous sea below. The agents for the Council scoured for an exact feed, but couldn't find anything precise. With this lead, though, he had left Lahar behind to continue searching for anything else while he went in the estimated location the burst of magic was sent.

Luckily for the teleporter, he had found something.

It had taken him the better part of the following day, of course, but he saw signs of actual disturbance of the earth where something small and even smaller still had lied on the soil. The magic was fresh, barely a day old at best.

"_A survivor! It must be!_" He thought, blinking as he shoveled through the ground, trying to see if something had perhaps been buried.

Sure enough, after his sleeves were stained by blotches of brown, the crimson-striped topped man withdrew a long strand of bloodied wrapping. A bandage!

"_A bandage...a small form the size of a toddler...and a smaller than average sized human...this can only mean-!_"

A sudden crackling sound came from the satchel slung around his left shoulder. A muffled voice was calling for him, and he knew whom it belonged. Reaching into the leather container he withdrew a crystal sphere - a Communications Lacrima - and it showed an immediate transparent image of bespectacled, teal-white robed man in charge of the Rune Knights himself; Lahar.

"Doranbolt, I have news," He intoned with a cagey expression on his face. "During our search we have found not a sign that the rest of the Fairy Tail Guild has survived. Not a hint of magical energy of theirs, nor the abundant life force that made up the island, can be found. It is likely it was completely annihilated, down to the last atom."

"Please don't tell me things I already know," The scarred man grimaced, his hand clutching at the orb with barely restrained emotion he had repressed inside of himself. The guilt, the gnawing sensation that he had done nothing to save anyone. But now, he had a lead and a promise that not all was lost. "I had already found signs that something resembling a survivor had assuredly made landfall off the coast of Fiore. Tracking them from here will be difficult, but not impossible-"

"That's the other thing," Lahar cut him off, holding a hand up to the sphere of his own that he had set up on a pedestal on the ship he was operating at. "Apparently, a guild operating near your location known as Lamia Scale has reported taking in a member of Fairy Tail into their custody. They haven't been able to contact her peers so they sent a notification to one of our nearby branches whom notified us."

Withdrawing a piece of paper, he began to read off the message in its entirety, "Due to the absence of immediate comrades, we are nursing an unconscious Mage of Fairy Tail back to health. We don't know the cause of injuries but it is safe to say that there had likely been a violent altercation. Once she awakens, we will try to find out the truth but until then, please let us know if you can find anything else out for us. With earnest haste, Guild Master Ooba."

"Lamia Scale," Doranbolt whispered, his eyes already looking towards the mainland with a fixed stare in the distance. "I know where to go next. Thanks, Lahar."

"Wait, don't you want me to tell you the description of the Mage-?"

"I don't need it," He dismissed, deactivating the Lacrima and placing it into his satchel. "Please be who I think you are...!"

And, in a flash, he disappeared; off to Lamia Scale to confirm his singular hope.

* * *

**Lamia Scale Guild Building, Fiore**

Much to her surprise, Wendy felt herself being pulled along by this small, red-headed child. She'd said her name was Sherria, and that everyone was looking for her, but she hadn't bothered to clarify a thing before she grabbed Wendy by the hand and began to tug. Too exhausted to resist, Wendy let herself be pulled, and had to wonder where exactly the girl was taking her — and with such enthusiasm? The fact that the emotion of happiness seemed alien, foreign to her now; a lifetime away. Wendy didn't enjoy this.

"You said you're Sherria...?" inquired Wendy. "Where _are_ we?"

"That's right!" replied Sherria. "I'm Sherria! And you're Wendy, right?"

"Y-Yes, but I'm still confused as to where I am!" Wendy's confusion was mounting, and her inability to cope with the girl's energy level felt like it was already beginning to wear on her. She was smiling so cheerfully, Wendy could only compare it to a blinding shine of light. "Please, I want to know where I am! And have you seen my friend, Charle?!"

"This is the Lamia Scale Guild!" Sherria chirped. "I live here with everyone, though they won't let me join the Guild yet!" She grinned broadly. "When I get bigger, I'm going to join, just like my big cousin! And I'll be a powerful Mage!"

_Lamia Scale..._ The name of the guild triggered something in the back of Wendy's brain. It took a moment for the name to register, but Wendy remembered remembered the name of the Guild from the Oración Seis debacle — back when she'd originally met Natsu, Erza, and Lucy, as well as the members of Blue Pegasus. The faces of Erza, Natsu, and Lucy swam in front of Wendy's mind; the warm, kind smiles of her friends that she would never see again. Tears began to well up in Wendy's eyes again, and her sniffling caught the attention of the young girl pulling her hand. Sherria stopped pulling, turning round and looking up at Wendy.

"Are you OK, Miss Wendy?"

Wendy blinked, slightly abashed at someone younger than her, even if it didn't look to be more than a few years difference, being concerned for her. "I...I'm sorry. I just don't know how to deal with everything I'm going through...I lost people very important to me...and it's my fault...!" The tears began to flow again without stopping, and Wendy was unable to stifle the emotions rising up in her body again.

A small hand brushed against her cheek, swiping the tears away with a gentle motion. "That's why everyone wants to see you, Miss Wendy! You lost the people who loved you, but Lamia Scale wants to help you! And helping people gives birth to new love...or so my cousins says!" She added the last bit honestly, though the sincerity in her voice was clear from the first word. "You don't need to cry when you have people to help you!"

Fighting against the cold, hellish feeling in the pit of her heart was a warmth that followed this statement. The message spouted by the young Sherria was the ideal at the heart of any guild, one that Fairy Tail especially lived, breathed, and slept by; the bonds that tied people together. More willingly, Wendy allowed Sherria to take her hand and begin to pull her along the stonework walls towards a new hallway, and a flight of stairs. The sounds of voice — which she should have heard, given her Dragon Slayer's senses — made her little ears twitch.

"There's...people?"

Sherria pulled Wendy eagerly down the flight of steps, leading towards a circular common room, not unlike the bar at the Fairy Tail guild. Unlike her home, however, Lamia Scale's meeting room was made of the same grey stonework that constructed the rest of the building, held up further by pillars of a different kind of stone; various tables were scattered about, and Wendy could see several people seated at each table, speaking seriously with one another. The addition of her footsteps, along with Sherria's, indicated to everyone that new arrivals had entered the room. Heads turned, eyes scanned the room; when everyone saw Wendy, the energy changed from serious conversation to absolute silence, and every individual adopted a manner indicative of being at the sickbed of a close friend.

"Um..." Wendy stood blankly, her eyes traveling over the entire room. The young Dragon Slayer hadn't expected so many people to be in the same room, and froze up nervously. "I..."

"Now, now, let us not scare the young one," a deep, reassuring voice sounded out over the silence; the imposing figure of a muscular, bad man stood tall over the sitting figures. He walked through the room easily, and Wendy felt a giant, yet gentle hand on her shoulder. "I am pleased to see you well again, Wendy Marvell. It has been some time since we last met."  
A much younger man with a shock of silver hair walked forward astride Jura, whose face was stern, spoke as well. "It really has been awhile, Wendy. Not since the incident with Oración Seis and Nirvana. I'm sorry we picked you up in such a sorry state, but I'm glad to see you're finally moving around."

"J-Jura...L-Lyon...?" The relief that accompanied familiarity welled up in Wendy's heart, her eyes beginning to mist with tears again. Forcibly, she held them back this time, quickly wiping her eyes to put on a brave face. "It's...good to see you again...!" She did mean it, earnestly, but her current emotional turmoil kept this reunion from being truly happy. "So this _is_ Lamia Scale..." She hadn't wanted to doubt little Sherria, but part of her had wondered if the child hadn't been one hundred percent truthful. That part of her deeply regretted mistrusting the girl. "Um...have you all seen Charle?"

"Your cat?" inquired Jura. "Ah, yes. The little thing is in quite a state, Wendy. She exhausted all of her magical power and still pushed herself to the limit...all in order to get you here. It's been three days since you two arrived and we took you in; the both of you were unconscious for that entire time, and your cat is still recovering from overexertion of her magical power."

_Charle...did all that for me...?!_ Wendy felt torn inside; first, everyone lost their lives to the dragon assault on Tenrō Island, and now Charle had risked her own life to save Wendy's. The young Dragon Slayer forced her trembling body to steady itself. "I can use healing magic...please, bring Charle to me...!"

Jura and Lyon led Wendy to an empty table, where she sat quietly. After a moment's continued silence, in which the Guild Members didn't have the will to break it, a beautiful woman with long, flowing red hair walked over towards Wendy, holding the figure of an unconscious Charle in her arms. This woman was another Lamia Scale mage that Wendy recognised; Sherry Blendy. A dull realisation struck Wendy; the little Sherria must be related to Sherry, perhaps the 'cousin' that she had mentioned. Too exhausted to comment on it, Wendy took Charle into her arms, and inhaled deeply.

A dull, jewel-like glow, hued green, spread from Wendy's arm towards Charle, enveloping her in its soft light.

"This...is your healing magic?" asked Sherria, who had been remarkably silent upon handing the Exceed to its partner. "I'm sorry we couldn't do more for Charle, Wendy. Our Guild doesn't have any sort of support Mage," She added as an aside. "But we were able to keep her stable with what we have! But it looks like what she needs now is you — you love this little cat, and I'm sure with your love, she'll be right as rain!"

Wendy nodded firmly, her face set. This was the first real task she'd performed since the attack on Tenrō Island, and she worried desperately that something might slip. Her abilities were not god-like, but they were simple and easy to execute; the cleanest air healed the deepest wounds. Focusing, Wendy applied her abilities to relieve her faithful companion of the stress that had been applied not only to her muscles, but to the physical organ which controlled an individuals ability to use magic. _Charle...should be recovering on her own...just how far did she push herself?!_

The Guild remained silent while Wendy worked, and it was after several long, hushed moments did the young Dragon Slayer look up towards the observant Mages. She exhaled, a long, deep release of breath that usually left one who had not inhaled in a disproportionately long amount of time. "Charle is...fine..." Her eyes began to swim again, looking up at everyone. "T-Thank you, for keeping her safe...I don't know what I'd have done if I'd lost Charle too..."

"Please Wendy, don't mention it," replied Lyon, showcasing an characteristic kindness that Wendy had come to expect when he wasn't dealing with Gray. "But that does bring us to the topic at hand...all of us here would like to know. What happened to the rest of Fairy Tail? How did you wind up outside our Guild?" The hushed silence became, if possible, more tenses. Every face in the room was on Wendy — Jura, Sherry, Yuka and Toby — and even Sherria seemed to show a hint of curiosity.

"Shouldn't this wait, Lyon?" inquired Jura. "Until the Master returns?"

"She's meeting with Fairy Tail's acting Guild Master right now," replied Lyon tersely. "News of the tragedy on Tenrō Island travels fast, given the Council was there to observe the events. But secondhand accounts are unreliable...and I believe I had a right to know, when Gray is concerned."

Sherry placed a hand gently on Wendy's shoulder. "Please, Wendy? I know it's hard to talk about, when you lose those you love...but Fairy Tail were our comrades as well...We'd like to know."

Had Charle been awake, she surely would have saved Wendy from this. She'd have snapped at Lyon, Jura, and Sherry in turn, barking at them to leave Wendy alone until she was ready to talk about it, and that would be the end of it. For such a small feline, Charle was very persuasive. But she wasn't conscious; she lay fast asleep in Wendy's arms, recovering. Clutching the Exceed for the emotional support she needed, Wendy swallowed the hesitation building in her throats.

Her friends were gone. And it was up to her to let everyone know. So their memory could be grieved for properly.

Thus, Wendy began to speak. She didn't cry this time. Her voice was hollow and weak, even as she explained how Acnologia, the Black Dragon himself, had descended upon Tenrō and laid waste to the entire battalion of Guild Members who were with her on the island. Only when Wendy described the feeling of terror she'd experienced when Acnologia released its breath weapon, and how she'd been flung away and knocked unconscious, did her voice finally quaver.

"It's amazing that you and Charle survived a direct hit..." Yuka was stunned, his narrow eyes widening. "It's almost a miracle..."

"A miracle of love," chimed in Sherry, to which Sherria nodded emphatically. "Perhaps the love of her guild mates saved her from the attack."

"Whatever the reason, to think that the tales of Acnologia were true. Even if it wasn't the The Black Dragon in the Book of Apocalypse himself, a dragon attack on the island of Tenrō cannot go unacknowledged," said Jura gravely. "I will contact the Master through Lacrima later. The Council must be made aware of this."

"That is worrisome..." muttered Lyon, who had suddenly managed to ditch his overcoat and shirt, showing off a remarkable bare chest. "To think that the bulk of Fairy Tail would be snuffed out so unexpectedly by a Dragon. It's almost too unreal..."

"We're glad you agree, Lyon," nodded Toby, his face switching from calm to incredulous in an instant. "But did you need to strip here, Lyon?!"

"Regardless," Jura cleared his throat gruffly. "Our primary goal now is Wendy's safe return to her Guild. The handling of this Acnologia, and other matters, can be worried about once she is safely back among her own."

"In that case, I would ask that you leave that task to me," the voice that spoke next did not belong to a single person who was already in the room. It was a different voice, and Wendy Marvell recognised it immediately.

"I-It's you-" Wendy choked out, her voice stuck on reflex to say the name she had thought was the man's name. Instead, the scarred, short-haired man with a striped high collared shirt of red and yellow wasn't who everyone thought he was. He wasn't 'Mest' but someone the Council sent to spy on the guild of Fairy Tail. She remembered him being convinced, albeit temporarily, to help fight Grimoire Heart but he eventually fled before...before...

As tears renewed, the azure haired girl found herself weeping again, though this time louder. The memories were still fresh, painful and she couldn't help but fall to her knees as she let the moisture slide hotly down her face.

The Lamia Scale members assembled looked on her with a mixture of sympathy and surprise, though no one had anything to really offer to help reassure her. Sherria knelt down to hug the older girl, patting her back to help show her unabashed good nature still rang true. While she continued to sniffle and cry, the scarred man's no-nonsense gaze he had come armed with had melted into something of regret. His bright eyes soaked in the sight, a part of his own self breaking on the inside and his mouth became a trembling grimace.

"I'm sorry...!"

Wendy felt herself hiccuping as she looked away from the younger girl comforting her and up at the standing man. She saw mud caked his boots and pants, his fingers dirtied just as much along the cusps of his bright coloured sleeves. Disheveled to a degree, she began to draw conclusions from it; she even saw something that resembled one of her old bandages still clinging to one of his hands that balled up into a shaking fist.

"I was...a coward. I could have done something, _anything_, to help prevent what happened," He continued to speak, his eyes looking away with shame. "Instead, I blindly followed orders and left you and your guild - no, your family - to such an awful fate."

She was so weak that she couldn't help but look on in a daze. From what she knew, despite disparagement sent his way by Natsu and others, he did all he could to help make sure she could live through it even trying to persuade her to run away. But she stood and fought with everyone, despite it all; then came the nightmare.

"Dude, can you take your shoes off-?"

"Wendy," Doranbolt, cutting off Toby's inane comment about his dirtied boots, fell to his knees and palmed the ground while bowing his head to the flooring of the guild's ground. "I can't presume to ask for forgiveness. However, what I can do from this point forward, is do whatever I can to help you! Whether you treat me as a shield, or a tool, it makes no difference to me. I must repent and this is the only way I see myself making up to what cruel fate I abandoned you to. Please, take me if you'll have me, or tell me you don't wish to see me again. Just say the word and I'll do anything to make it right!"

There was a long pause that was only offset by the rustling of weight and movement of fabric of the various people standing at attention. Sherry thought this man permeated a deep hurt, obviously feeling conviction from what had transpired that she wasn't privy to. Lyon looked to Jura, and the pair knew that this man had a different atmosphere to him than people normally associated with Fairy Tail; it was likely he was an outsider, or someone affiliated with the Council. Toby just glared at the man's dirty body getting soot all over the floor when he had busied himself cleaning it only hours ago.

Wendy finally stood up, and the scarred man tensed. Walking away from Sherry and her younger cousin, Wendy, still carrying Charle, patted her feet over to the man.

To his wincing surprise, he felt her free hand reach down and touch his filthy ones. Looking up, his eyes met hers, her red-stained face weak but showing a surprising strength past the pain she was feeling.

"I could use a friend," She spoke, her voice almost cracking as she smiled at him. "Can you help me with that?"

As his own tears began to flow down his face, his own face grimaced as he nodded, his voice etched with affirmation, "Of course! I'll...try to not let you down."

"As touching as this is..." Lyon inquired, coughing to interrupt the moment between the pair. "Who are you supposed to be?"

Wiping his face, Doranbolt helped Wendy stand upright as he faced them with her in front of him, "My name is Doranbolt. And I...was, acting as a member of the guild in secret, by the name of Mest. I work for the Magic Council. Its thanks to my coordination with their efforts that I managed to narrow down where she was."

"That explains your dreadful state," Sherry commented, her face blushing as she held a hand up to cover her mouth.

"And what does the Council want with Wendy?" Jura inquired, his arms crossing over his chest with a less than happy expression on his face.

"Nothing!" Doranbolt exclaimed, his hands crisscrossing in front of himself. "My job was only to observe and report. Even if I should find Wendy, I have no orders beyond that. I simply have to report my mission was successful."

"I see," Lamia Scale's Ace replied, unfolding his arms as he seemed to visibly relax. "So, you said when you entered that you can help her get back to her guild?"

"I have Teleportation Magic," Doranbolt explained, waving a hand with emphasis. "Since I've been to their guild hall before, I can make the trip in a single go. All I need is to have physical contact with Wendy and I'll bring her home."

"Impressive," Lyon spoke, somehow now bereft of his pants as he leaned back with his arms clasped over his chest without batting an eye that he stripped; much to the visible chagrin of his colleagues. "I can see why the Council values your skills so highly to act on your own."

"Yes...well...thanks, I suppose," Doranbolt replied, awkwardly scratching his chin at being praised, regardless of how passive aggressive it sounded.

After Wendy recollected herself, she grabbed a hold of Charle in her arms and bid everyone in Lamia Scale farewell. She thanked Sherria for making her feel welcome and the rest for having her as their guest for so long. Promising to see them soon when she can, Doranbolt places a hand on her shoulder and nods stoically at the others, thanking them for what they've done for Wendy.

And, in an instant, they vanished with no trace behind but the soil he left from his clothes on their floor.

"Toby," Lyon commented, patting the dog-cat man on his shoulder. "Time to clean that up."

"B-But it wasn't my fault!" He lamented.

* * *

**A/N:  
LastationLover5000: **_I do believe hell has frozen over. I never thought I'd ever be excited to write a Fairy Tail fanfic again, but with my favourite character of the series at the helm — and about eight arcs with at least rudimentary concepts all planned out thanks to my partner-in-crime — I have never been more excited to start a new fanfic, much less just to do anything Fairy Tail related. I wanted to get out a new chapter ASAP because I want our prospective dear readers to know this story is going to be right up there with Heart of Adventurers and The Erased Chronicles on our update schedule; this story means business and we're going to have a blast! I'm not going to lie, writing heavy moments is not my forte, and a lot of this chapter was very heavy; Wendy is still working through her emotional grief, and she's not going to get over it anytime soon. But with the mysterious Doranbolt as her benefactor, and the young girl returning to Fairy Tail, I think she'll be fine. This also marks the first appearance of Sherria Blendy, who will also become far more integral in the future. I do hope you all enjoyed this update; we'll be back as soon as we can with the next chapter, so until then, sit tight!_

**Demod20: **_And a new update, so soon after the most recent one too! Yes we want to let you know this story is going to be a persistently recurring one, that we promise you. As for what I wrote, we divided this chapter proportionately. My co-author worked on Wendy and her coping while being introduced and reintroduced to new faces and old. Little Sherria is so precious! I, on the other hand, worked on obscure Lahar and confusing man that he is, Doranbolt. Though he had a weird history (especially in the Anime), both character and design wise, I want him to be a more proactive and permanent member of the Main Cast for this story. I hope I did well to convey the amount of emotional weight this man had in seeing Wendy, devastated but alive and feeling the guilt from doing nothing to even help them when they needed it most. Well, I look forward to seeing where we take him, Wendy and the rest of the story forward!_


	3. Home

**Chapter 3 - Home**

**Written by LastationLover5000 and Demod20**

* * *

It happened in an instant.

One moment, Wendy was bidding farewell to the kind people of the Lamia Scale Guild. And the next, the scenery around her blurred and then reorganized into being. A familiar road lied beneath her feet, the scent of the air had a slew of pleasant aromas and the sound of bustling townsfolk in the distance complemented the chirping of birds and whooshing of the wind. She didn't think she'd be here so soon, but she was.

She was truly home again.

A thought occurred to her amidst her wave of nostalgia. Looking over at Doranbolt as his hand released her shoulder, she questioned with a few choice blinks, "Wait, why didn't you teleport me into the Guild Hall?"

"I think it'll be best you return home through the front door," The Council agent replied, a look of affection placed on his face as he smiled down at her. "Should I lead the way?"

"N-No, I can do it," Wendy stuttered out, waving her hand with protest while holding Charle close to herself. Breathing slowly she began to walk towards the place she called home for the past half a year. The memories she had carved into the hall itself will forever be etched into her mind, as well as the adventures tied from them and in them. Even now as she walked closer she could hear the raucous noise of people inside, with someone she didn't recognize wholly speaking to someone else.

Biting her lower lip she stopped in front of the door. Something inside of her gnawed at the prospect of showing up, unannounced, after what she left behind. Even if it had the words plastered 'WELCOME' on it she still would feel hesitant to enter. She could feel Doranbolt's shadow waiting behind her, almost pleading to be of help and open the gates of the guild for her.

But she had to do it. If she was ever going to move on, this was the obvious first step in coming to terms with things that have happened.

With a breathy sigh, Wendy placed her hand on the door, pushing it open-

"-and that's why I think its to your benefit that we merge our guilds, given the most probable worse case scenario."

"With all due respect, Master Baba, I cannot make a decision this drastic without some given thought. There's still no indicator that they really are all gone."

"And you need to start thinking of the future, less you spin-!"

The two figures, speaking in the center amidst mutters, grumbling and other less than pleased conversations were ones Wendy recognized upon further inspection.

On the right was one adorned in a white knee-length jacket with sleeves pulled up to the elbows with a flared collar with blue interior trim, was Macao Conbolt, the slicked back cobalt haired man with a slight muscular build and lightly trimmed facial hair. Upon departing for the S-Class Tests, she remembered he was placed in charge of the guild in Makarov's absence. Given his longtime experience and wisdom, he seemed to be the best choice with such a huge influx of new members joining due to recent strings of victories the guild had; a number she noticed had lessened to half upon returning with chaste glances around.

On the left, was the master of Lamia Scale she had briefly met after the matter of Oracion Seis was settled, Master Ooba Baba. She, much like Makarov, was an old and short woman who looked ready to retire despite vocal objections she'd have. With bony hands, a shriveled up oblong shaped face with squinting eyes, her hair was larger than her torso with a three-layered bun pointed backwards. Enamored with golden jewelry around the neck, bracelets on the wrists and a jeweled collar that held her scarlet cloak over her purple dressed person, she was a visible definition of someone not wanting to let go of the glory days.

"Its not like we don't appreciate the offer," Wakaba spoke, the pompadour, green-speckled shirted man replied as he adjusted his pipe; both his hair and his stem ebbing telltale smoke as part of his habit and his specialty in magic. "But Macao was left with the responsbility of holding all members of the guild accountable. If we abandoned this hall, we wouldn't have a home to go back to."

"Bah! And you'll keep taking in jobs that the others did so well?" The hunched harpy snapped dismissively, pointing at the chair leaning man. And in a twist, she sent him suddenly spinning - much to his shouting chagrin - as she screamed out. "SPIN for your foolishness! SPIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!"

"Please, be reasonable, Master Baba-!"

"I'll send you spinning too, boy-!"

"Hey...is that-?" A voice from the mission board piped up. The Mage who hadn't went on a job in years, Nab, was the muscular man adorned in islander native garbs with a sleeveless jacket and shorts, allowing his bare feet to touch the floor while his brawny hands slackened to his sides.

As he spoke another girl, Kinana, a recent addition whom was a waitress dropped her platter in surprise. The clattering of dishes caused everyone who was either paying attention to the older men and woman's antics jerked immediately to the now petrified Wendy. Her heart pounded loudly in her ears as voices made gasps in the pregnant pause. Even though the master of Lamia Scale had already spoke of this development not but earlier in the day, it was still hard to imagine.

"Wendy!" Laki, a lavender haired girl with a red bow and spectacles cried out. "You...you really are alive!"

"H-Hi-" Wendy managed to shakily raise a hand, her face paling and her eyes spinning.

Before she had much of a chance to say anything, a slew of people suddenly galloped to meet her. Wendy squeaked out, holding onto the unconscious Charle in fear as she was about to be assailed by a bunch of mages aiming to embrace and/or meet her head-on.

Doranbolt, thankfully, stepped in between her and the rest with hands raised up before the heel-skidding mages.

"Take it easy," He tried to speak diplomatically. "She just got up and around after being bedridden."

"I-It's alright, Doranbolt, really," Wendy tried to speak up, causing the scarred man to look over with a puzzled expression. Despite her squeamish expression, she stomached it back and put on a weak smile. "They're friends. You don't need to protect me."

"If you say so," He sighed, stepping aside and letting her shakily approach them.

The first was Laki, whom leaped up and hugged Wendy. Despite squeaking out a slight "Meep!", she hugged back. Soon Nab gave her a big hug as well, which was then shared by a duo hug by the gunslingers Alzack and Bisca. Max Alors, the dark blonde with a bowl cut hair and short blue tee shirt, gave her a half hug and Reedus gave her a tearful embrace. Vijeeter, Warren and Mickey all gave their praise, comments and sign of affection. Even young Romeo gave Wendy a hug, the Slayer having to bend over but was thankful for the thought of it. Even those she didn't recognize gave her hugs, shakes of the hand and headpats, all doing their best to make her feel welcome back into the guild.

When it came to Macao, the older man gave her a firm rub on the head which Wakaba doubled. While Ooba just scowled to nothing in particular, she waddled over to a table and sat on a chair, observing their conversation with interest but saying nothing.

"Wendy. We heard you were found outside of the Lamia Scale, we didn't know what to make of it," The acting Guild Master spoke, his tall form standing with his arms crossed seriously over his chest. "I...know the worst has possibly come to pass, but I think we'd all like to know. What happened out there? Where's the master, Natsu and the others?"

Wendy knew she had to steel herself for the eventuality they'd bring this up. Even though she had just explained it to Lamia Scale not but an hour ago, it was still a painful thing to bring up. Too exhausted to cry, she took a deep breath and held Charle tight as she began to retell the tale of how the exams started. She omitted the part where she found out Doranbolt was an agent for the Magic Council, and how he was sent there by a task force to undermine the guild in some way; but the rest, of how he helped, and the enemies they faced, achieving narrow victory against Grimoire Heart...only to then be set afoul by the nightmare that was Acnologia.

"Did you say...Acnologia?" Wakaba inquired, his squinting eyes open wide with recognition. It was shared in accompaniment with Macao, and even Lamia Scale's Guild Master's mouth hung ajar at hearing that last bit.

"To hear about our former master, Precht, attacking us is one thing...but the Black Winged Apocalypse? That's something I never would've thought could come across our people," Macao spoke, his face beading sweat while his eyes focused at the floor while cupping his chin in thought. "I think...that'd explain why when Gildarts returned he was all bandaged up from his failed mission. At first I thought something else could've done it, but now I know he had run into him to begin with. But to run into him again, with all of our comrades just recovering from a fierce fight? Damn bad luck, that is..."

"Forgive us, Master," Laki proffered, raising a hand for the man to look over at her with curiosity. "But...what is Acnologia? Wendy says he was a dragon but, most dragons we hear about in books don't have names. Why is his so special?"

"We're not actually really sure," Macao confessed, lowering his left hand to his hip while gesturing with the other for emphasis. "All we do know is that anytime he's shown up, death and destruction follow his wake. The largest achievement of his that got him written in the Book of Apocalypse was him annihilating an entire country overnight. Of all dragons that's come before, he was the worst and the one that all men fear; perhaps even the last living dragon that no magic on this world can harm it."

"How terrible...!" Kinana exclaimed, holding a hand up to her mouth, tearing up at the thought of the kind dwarf Makarov being gone so completely after he had taken her in.

"Natsu...Gray...Erza," Alzack grimaced, looking down with balled up fists while Bisca places a comforting hand on his shoulder; one he raises a hand to squeeze it back, his face giving her a bittersweet smile of thanks in return.

"Mirajane...Elfman...even Gildarts and the Master," Warren grimaced, his rounded lips shaking as his eyes watered up. "To think they're all just gone. Just like that."

"But...how did Wendy survive that?" Nab inquired, scratching his head as he looked over at the glum expressed Slayer, still cradling the Exceed in her arms; still asleep from the exhaustion her healing magic had only just assisted in recovering from.

"I-If she survived," Jet began to say, looking over at Droy with a faint bit of hope glimmering in their eyes. "Then...maybe Levy has too?"

"If someone like Wendy could make it, anything's possible, right?!"

"And what do you _mean_ by _that?_" Doranbolt sharply asked, catching the pair of Shadow Gear dead in their tracks. Glaring at them with wide eyes, the man had to restrain himself from not walking up to them and reaching for their collars. Realizing he drew unwanted attention, he raised up a hand, and began to apologize. "I-I'm sorry. What I meant to say was that you shouldn't get your hopes up; be grateful for the comrade you've gotten back."

"That brings up another question," Bisca broached the issue, the gunslinger looking at him with a more critical eye. "Who are you? I feel like I should know you, but I can't place why."

"Yeah, it is strange," Warren spoke, raising forefingers as he concentrated on his Telepathy. "I can't read his mind either. Its...clouded. Who is he?"

"I'm Wendy's friend," Doranbolt replied stoically, meeting his accusing stare with a cagey glare back. "That's all you need to know."

"If you haven't noticed, this is Fairy Tail, not a public mead hall," Max spoke derisively, waving a hand out at him. "We appreciate you being there for her, but can you please leave? As in, now?"

"Wait," Wendy raised a hand, stopping any further altercation between everyone. "I want him here."

"But Wendy-"

"Its fine, Bisca," Macao interjected, giving a knowing glance to Wakaba before smiling over at Doranbolt. "Name's Macao Conbolt. And, in light of these events, I'm now the official 4th Master of Fairy Tail. Though we aren't much, given circumstances, we still have heart and pride in ourselves as free spirited mages. You are welcome to stay here as long as you like, until Wendy or I say otherwise. Does that sound fair, Mister...?"

Smiling at this, the striped-shirted scarred man nodded with appreciation, "It's Doranbolt. And thank you for your understanding and hospitality."

Despite a few looks of confusion and disbelief at the conclusion of his stay, Wendy was happy that Macao wasn't refusing. She felt kinship to the man, for having seen him beg her to be of use in any way for failing to do what he thought he could've. While her guild didn't know it now, Doranbolt had a pure heart beyond his ego and wants to put others ahead of himself.

"...maybe...I can too..." She thought to herself, quietly hugging the sleeping Charle as she considered this train of thought.

* * *

_Black wings spread outward, clad in a smoky film while looking on high down at her. Hollowed white eyes, swirls of an abyss that never ended. A curled beak for a mouth, spreading wide to show rows upon rows of fangs; jagged, like serrated blades, oozing with saliva. A horrible glow began to whirl from within the back of its throat, a terrible screeching sound penetrating the sky as she looked up, petrified._

_And then, without warning, a massive geyser of sheer white struck her!_

A baleful scream tore from her throat as she was wrenched from her nightmare and into the waking world.

Her arms reached to clutch onto something she expected was there, but wasn't any longer.

"C-C-Charle?!" She choked out hoarsely, her head swinging back and forth, cold sweat trickling down her face and off her chin onto the quilt. "W-Where are you?!"

Seeing her not anywhere within her quaint room of the guild's dormitory for girls - Fairy Hills - she felt her blood go cold. The silence of the mostly absent rooms surrounding hers on this floor rattled her further. Despite liking going back to her old room, the nightmares persisted and without Charle present, evidence that everyone she loved going missing from her life was now becoming a horrifying reality.

"CHARLE! DON'T LEAVE ME!"

Amidst her hollering an instantaneous shift in space took place. A familiar man, wearing now a simple long-sleeved pajamas with a hanging sleep cap on his head, appeared in a bout of a swift teleport to her bedside.

"Wendy, what's wrong?" Doranbolt questioned, his eyes wide and full of worry. "I heard your screams and-"

He wouldn't finish as she began to sob. Grabbing his midsection, she buried her face into his front as she began to choke on cries and speak expletives that he couldn't make out. While his arms were raised up in confusion, he'd try to decide if it was best to comfort her, or let her cry it out unimpeded.

Then, the door on the other side of the room opened.

"Wendy?!" Charle cried out, her voice a raised whisper as she walked inside, adorned in her own small-sized pj's as she trotted towards her dear friend. "I'm so sorry! I just went to refresh myself for a few minutes and lost track of time. I'm so sorry-"

"Is...this a recurring problem?" The man asked, looking over to the Exceed with a concerned look.

Biting her lip, the feline sighed as she leaped up and began to hug Wendy, whom finally returned it but not letting go of Doranbolt just yet. "She's been having nightmares, yes. Ever since I woke up the other night I tried to help make it easier for her. She usually calms down when she wakes up next to me. She was sleeping so soundly, that I didn't think she would...again..."

"Right," The agent replied with certainty. "I'll start sleeping in here, then."

"You'll what?!" The Exceed suddenly raised her voice.

"Until Wendy feels safe to rest on her own, of course," The scarred man proffered, unmoved by her sudden outburst. "Unless, you think its best I maintain my distance?"

"I...you...hmmmm," The white haired feline stammered, looking a measure of conflict. With her ears twitching she realized no one in the building had heard Wendy. What few female members of Fairy Tail remained, they obviously were roomed elsewhere and weren't the least disturbed by this happenstance. The isolation of being alone, toppled by a recent traumatic event, made the Exceed wonder if that's what was causing the recurring nightmares?

"It...is a bit _too_ quiet," Charle affirms, nodding sadly up to Doranbolt. "You truly don't mind?"

"Don't worry," The man smiled, patting Wendy on the head as he noticed she had fallen mostly asleep clinging to him. "She needs to feel safe in her home, yes? I'll keep watch so you don't have to feel overwhelmed."

"...thank you, Doranbolt," The Exceed finally said after a long pause, watching him lay her back on the bed and tuck her in. "Its good that Wendy has a friend like you."

"You think so, huh?" He questioned, his smile traded for a thin-lipped look of solemn contemplation. "I wonder if I can live up to that kind of expectation?"

"Then don't doubt yourself. I'm not strong enough to hold Wendy up when she's already lacking confidence. Someone has to stand up for her, and I can only do so much," She replied firmly.

"Not like I did my job for a promotion to see you all get burned," He muttered under his breath, making Charle frown at him. Shaking his head, he smiled morosely at her as he walked around to the foot of the bed, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms as his eyes closed, maintaining a half-smirk as he began to rest. "The irony I have to protect the guild, after my mission's failure, isn't lost on me. I can only wonder how long I can keep it up?"

"Well, the guild seems to think you're alright," Charle answered. "That's good enough for me, for now."

"Yeah," Doranbolt muttered, drifting to sleep in his odd position as he closed with drifting thoughts. _I wonder how the higher-ups will think of me hanging around here instead of reporting back? They're probably pretty mad..._

* * *

_Pretty mad was an understatement, _Doranbolt thought ruefully to himself. It had been a full week since the young man had returned to Fairy Tail with Wendy, and about four days since his new sleeping arrangements had been settled. Attempting to ease the soreness in his back, the Magic Council agent found himself on the receiving end of a call from none other than his comrade in the Council, Lahar.

"It's been a week, Doranbolt!" came Lahar's tense voice, ripe with irritation through the communication Lacrima. "You take off suddenly, with barely any explanation, and then we receive no communication for over a week! I hope you have an explanation, because the higher-ups are riding me on this one!"

"You don't understand, Lahar," replied Doranbolt tersely, his eyes locked to the eyes of the image of Lahar within the Lacrima. "You weren't there on the island itself. Fairy Tail is...truly something, and I've done them a great wrong. But Wendy managed to survive, in spite of all of that. If I stay here, and protect Wendy while she needs it, I can make amends for the events of Tenrō Island."

"'Make amends'!?" repeated Lahar incredulously. "Have you forgotten that you initially infiltrated their guild to destroy them, Doranbolt? For the sake of a promotion!? What are you playing at now, talking like that? You owe Fairy Tail nothing!"

Images of Wendy flashed through Doranbolt's mind; her tears, her grief, and her pain, all brought vividly to the forefront in a surging flash. For the first time since he'd began working with the Magic Council, Doranbolt felt a irritation rising up against Lahar, his own benefactor. "I may not owe Fairy Tail itself anything...but to Wendy Marvell, I made a promise. I can't return to active duty while Wendy needs me by her side. If you want to consider this an official resignation, Lahar, you can take it how you want..." Doranbolt hesitated, "...but I'd prefer not to leave the Council on terms like these."

"Doranbolt, I don't know what that girl means to you, but you have a duty here at the Council!"

"Forgive me, Lahar," Doranbolt replied. With suddenness, the man rushed his head forward, crashing his forehead into the Communication Lacrima crystal, and destroying it. The last thing Lahar saw was Doranbolt's face before his Lacrima cut to nothingness. The idiocy of his actions hit him almost immediately; a sharp pain seared in his forehead, and the man felt something warm and wet drip downwards across the bridge of his nose.

Of course, slamming his head into a solid sphere of crystal had hurt him. But he didn't care.

_Blood is a small price to pay for Wendy's sake,_ Doranbolt thought to himself. _I owe her far more than that..._

"That was quite an interesting conversation."

The suddenly voice gave Doranbolt a start; on edge as he had been for the entire week, constantly listening for a sign of Wendy's distress, the Magic Council member — no, former Magic Council member now — was surprised to see Macao leaning against the doorway, the smile of a father on his face. Hands in his pockets, he crossed the distance between them, the Fourth Master of Fairy Tail and the man sworn to protect Wendy stood eye-to-eye.

"It's you...the Fourth Master...Macao, wasn't it?"

"I'm glad you remember my name," replied Macao easily. "Tell me...how long are you going to keep pretending to work for the Council?"

Doranbolt eyed Macao apprehensively. There was something in the man's gaze that Doranbolt didn't like. It wasn't accusatory, and that itself was the problem; Doranbolt, as far as the entire Guild was concerned, was an unknown variable. Yet Macao acted very familiarly to him, and that statement about him pretending to work for the Council seemed to trigger something in the back of the young man's mind. Wiping the blood dripping down his face away, Doranbolt maintained silence.

"Look, you don't have to say anything," Makarov sighed. "I know you're in deep with them. But," he added pointedly, "as one of the old guards of the guild and as current _acting_ Guild Master, I know things." I also know one of the reasons none of the guild recognizes you is because of your Memory Alteration."

"...Macao, why are you mentioning this to me?" Doranbolt asked slowly. "If I am undercover, aren't you blowing it right now?"

"Why not ease Wendy's pain?"

The question was so abrupt that it took Doranbolt offguard, sidelining the man as if the Fairy Tail Master had slapped him across the face with the suggestion. "What—?!"

Macao's hand came up between the two to indicate a request for silence. "Hear me out, Doranbolt, before you rebuke me." He motioned for Doranbolt to follow him, and the young man complied. They walked out of the cramped room where he'd been having his communication with Lahar, and gestured to Fairy Tail's bar. While the guild members who still remained were chatting with each other, sharing drinks, enjoying the return of at least one of their members safe and sound, the celebrated survivor herself sat alone, with only Charle for company. Her mood, while it didn't infect the room, could be _felt_ around her. The lavender-haired Laki checked in on Wendy from time to time, and the little Dragon Slayer smiled only to wave her off, before resuming her solitary sitting.

"It's been nearly a week since she's returned to us, but we all can tell. She puts on a brave face but she's in a horrible amount of pain. It..." Macao hesitated before continuing, as it was quite clear he didn't like the route this conversation took, despite being the one to broach it. "...will probably would be easier if she forgets it. Everything about that makes her cry, everything Laki and the others hear during the night."

Silence followed Macao's statement. Doranbolt's face was grim as he watched his small companion, and he could only close his eyes, sighing. "It isn't like the thought never crossed my mind," he admitted. "But...to use it that way...I couldn't bear it. I've done enough harm to Wendy, and repressing her memories on a scale like that would be far too sudden. The massive hole it would leave in her memory would be unexplainable; also, my magic isn't foolproof. If something jogged her memory back into place, the shock could potentially render her mentally crippled. I'm sorry, but I refuse."

Macao placed a hand on Doranbolt's shoulder, giving it a fatherly grip. "I understand. Just keep what I said in mind, Doranbolt. Time heals all wounds, but the kind that are buried this deep may never truly heal."

"I know..."

Doranbolt left the conversation on this foreboding note, and crossed the room instantly through the use of Direct Line, materialising by Wendy's side. He leaned casually against the wooden table, his sudden appearance having startling a departing Laki, yet leaving Wendy unperturbed, though Charle's fur stood on end. "How are you doing...?" His voice, far from the stern tone he'd carried in his conversation with the Fourth Master, had become gentle and kind instantly when he spoke to Wendy.

"Nothing's changed..." said Wendy, slowly. "I'm finally home...but it's still so hard..." Wherever Wendy looked in the Guild, she couldn't shake the shades of her teammates and friends; Gajeel on stage. Natsu and Gray fighting in the middle of the bar, somehow roping Elfman into their mess. Erza's exasperated efforts to reign them in, while poor Lucy could only watch and let the chaos sweep her along, and Makarov allowing the chaos. The bar itself seemed empty without Mirajane to serve drinks, Cana's usual perch was empty, and Juvia would have been fawning over Gray at this time. Levy should be where Jet and Droy sat, a duo who looked nearly as forlorn as Wendy herself. "Their memories are everywhere..."

"I know it hurts, Wendy," Charle reached up from the table to lay a paw on Wendy's shoulder. "Please, don't rush yourself. Neither one of us expects you to bounce back immediately."

"She's right," replied Doranbolt. "Healing is a slow process. When you're ready to take your first step, we'll be here to support you."

"...Thanks, you two..."

Fairy Tail's entrance doors burst open, attracting the attention of every person in the guild. Nab rushed through, out of breath, holding several letters in his hands. Only one had been opened, and it was clutched in Nab's trembling hands. The man ran across the tavern floor, panting and wheezing; he bent over, clutching the stitch in his side before speaking. "M-Master Macao...we...we...you won't believe it..."

"W-What's wrong, Nab?!" Macao had never seen the man so exhausted, or so flabbergasted. "Catch your breath and speak to me!"

It took a moment for Nab's lungs to put out the fire, and when he was finally able to speak, what he had to say was incredible. "Master...you won't believe what just came to us...it's an S-Rank job...and it has the Seal of the King of Fiore!" The guild gasped collectively, shock rippling throughout every soul; even Wendy stirred, her dull brown eyes blinking and her ears twitching to listen.

Macao gripped the paper in his hands, reading and re-reading the statement, the shaking of his hands becoming more and more erratic. "I...this..." Now it was the Master's turn to stammer and mince words, unable to believe the words printed on the paper before his eyes. When he finally regained his composure, he read aloud:

"_A formal request to the strongest guild in the country of Fiore,  
your assistance in the detainment of a certain brand of brigands is required.  
Promising a reward of 50 billion Jewels.  
Further details will be given to the advance party representative of the King of Fiore, in Crocus._"

A buzzing, as though of angry bees, began to fill the Guild Hall. The members of Fairy Tail were muttering among themselves, and Wendy could pick out several words all at once.

"The king..."

"Jewels..."

"50 billion..."

"The capital city..."

The young girl felt slightly dizzy from the influx of sounds, but she had to admit, she was as surprised as the rest. Jobs normally entered the guild via job forms that listed the client, basic details, and the reward. This was different than any job request they'd ever received; sent directly from the royal family themselves. It was a job that carried with it the reputation of their guild, as the strongest in Fiore. If they _didn't _take it...

..._could_ they take it?

In all the excitement of the moment, the fact that Fairy Tail was missing its heaviest hitters crashed back down on everyone, weighing on their spirits. The promise of 50 billion jewels was incredible; the expenses of their Guild would be paid for and then some for quite awhile. It was so tempting...

"...But none of us can take on an S-Rank job," Warren said, voicing what everyone was thinking. "We weren't even selected for the exams..."

"50 Billion Jewels..." muttered Mickey Chickentiger, a wistful tone in her voice. "Are we really going to have to pass it up?"

"I couldn't go even if I wanted to," said Chico C Hammitt, due to the limitations of her magic.

"We're going to have to pass this one up, Macao," Wakaba said, sounding resigned.

"You're going to have to call me 'Master', Wakaba," replied a disgruntled Macao. "But I know that...this is a great opportunity, but we just can't take it."

"I-I'll do it..."

Dead silence.

Out of the entire Guild, only a single soul had volunteered to take on the S-Rank Job. Little Wendy Marvell had stood up from her seat, walking forward to face Macao; the Fourth Master of Fairy Tail, who had thought nothing else could surprise him today, had not expected this.

"W-Wendy, it's fine," he said quickly, raising his hands in protest. "We know how hard of a time you're having lately. You don't have to push yourself too hard. This job is a great opportunity, but you're not in a fit state to take the job; besides, you aren't even an S-Class Mage..."

"I'll do it," Wendy repeated, firmly this time. Her eyes, for the first time since she'd returned, were no longer dull and lifeless. A fire was burning within, the soft brown blazing strongly.

"Wendy, it's too soon!" Charle objected, putting her foot down figuratively and literally, a small _thunk!_ indicating her stomping for emphasis. "I am firmly against you taking any kind of mission, S-Rank or otherwise, in the state you're in!"

"I...I know I'm not an S-Class Mage...and I know I'm not in the best place right now..." Wendy placed both hands to her chest, gripping them tightly. No more tears. No more crying. "But this is how I'll take my first step forward! If I just sit here, everyone's sacrifice and my life will be wasted, won't they? I've come home, to my family...and if a job like this is what we'll need to stay afloat, then I can't say no! Please, Master! Let me do it."

Materialising at her side, Doranbolt's hand gripped Wendy's shoulder. "If Wendy is going, then I am going."

"Doranbolt!" Wendy's face broke into a weakened smile.

"Surely you didn't think I would let you go alone?"

"As if she'd be alone," replied Charle huffily. "If I can truly do nothing to stop Wendy from going, then I shall be going as well!"

"I don't think a party of three is really going to cut it," Max spoke up, sliding out of his chair and walking over towards the strange trio to stand beside them. "I'm not really S-Class material either, but you'll find my magic can be helpful in a pinch! Besides," he added, "I'm not sure I completely trust you yet, Doranbolt. And Fairy Tail mages have to watch out for their own."

To everyone's surprise, Macao began to cry. Tears poured from his eyes, his shoulders shook, and the man began to wail loud enough to attract the attention of onlookers passing by outside. "Everyone...even with the Master and the others gone...we've still got a damn fine Guild!" Clearing his throat, Macao abruptly stood tall, crossing his arms firmly and adopting a sudden official attitude.

"Very well! As the Fourth Master of the Fairy Tail Guild, I approve this S-Rank mission! However...!" Macao waved his hand, thrusting it, palms flat, out towards Doranbolt. The cloth covering Doranbolt's right shoulder vanished, revealing a bare forearm. The skin darkened, and the pattern of the Fairy Tail Guild symbol emerged, bright and orange. "Guild rules prohibit mages unaffiliated with the Guild from taking on quests under our name."

"I..." Doranbolt spluttered, gripping his shoulder in vivid shock. "Macao...what did you...!"

"Welcome to Fairy Tail, Doranbolt."

* * *

The spirit of the Guild was considerably higher as the strange new team of Max Alors, Doranbolt, Wendy Marvell, and Charle made their preparations for the sudden S-Rank mission. Macao informed the Royal Capital that the mission had officially been accepted by their Guild, and within a day, the quartet was ready to depart. Wendy found the suspense almost stifling as she and her teammates stood on the door of the Fairy Tail guild, ready to step outside.

Nervously, Wendy took a tentative step over the threshold, and for a moment, felt as though nineteen familiar pairs of hands gently nudged her along, her feet stepping out into the roads of Magnolia and beyond.

It was time to move forward.

When the four had departed, the Guild remained celebratory. All except Jet and Droy, who, if anything, would have been the exact opposite of the 'life of the party'.

"Do you think we should have volunteered too, Jet?" asked Droy, his voice listless. The idea that Levy had possibly survived, when Wendy had arrived, had reignited hope. When no news of any Fairy Tail members gad surfaced over the past week, that fire died out as soon as it had ignited. They had to accept the reality.

"Part of me wanted to," replied Jet. "But...without Levy, what _is_ Team Shadow Gear? Levy..."

The two of them, never usually seen out of the company of their third member, had taken the losses of those at Tenrō Island as hard as Wendy.

"We only took on some of those higher ranked jobs because of Levy," said Droy, to Jet's agreement. "We're going to have to reexamine Shadow Gear from the top down...if Wendy can move forward, so can we."

The winds for Fairy Tail were finally shifting.

* * *

**A/N:  
Demod20: **_This was another fun chapter to write. Not because we enjoy writing angst, but it helps propel this story forward to brighter horizons! Poor Wendy. She's been through so much and you can tell she's breaking inside. Doranbolt's trying his best too, for her sake and you can get the makings of a good man behind the years of being a jaded agent for the Council. Speaking of which, I'm glad my co-author and I nipped that in the bud. The reveal came right out of left field when it did, so having it brought up this way feels a bit more...natural...and it helps fulfill the Redemption Arc he's undergoing. And with a mysterious big money mission sent to them, its up to Wendy and company to bring home the cash to help keep the guild afloat. What could the King of Fiore want with Fairy Tail? You'll just have to wait and see in the next chapter!_

**LastationLover5000: **_I'm not going to lie, this was an unexpected surprise, but a welcome one. My co-author and I are feeling an incredible amount of excitement for this new story, so I suppose a third chapter was definitely in order. We wanted to get the arc's main idea rolling almost immediately, so, while we managed to write more establishing moments, the plot is going to get underway from Chapter 4 onward. I'm enjoying this a lot. We're going to make use of characters that, until now, were almost only background characters, and the start of that is Max! I never would have considered Doranbolt, Wendy, Charle, and Max as a team, but here we are! Considering Doranbolt being a Magic Council agent is a late-arrival spoiler now, I don't feel bad having brought it up here. Alright everyone! We'll see you in the next chapter!_


	4. The Blooming Capital - Crocus

**Chapter 4 - The Blooming Capital - Crocus  
Written by LastationLover5000 and Demod20**

* * *

It was quite the trip planned.

When Team Wendy - the elected name for the new squad for Fairy Tail missions - set out, they did so by planning the easiest mode of transportation from Magnolia to Crocus. Given there was no train tracks linking up with Magnolia with the other towns that gave ease of movement through long distances, their options came down to cross-country airship, or vehicle rental. The option to have Doranbolt utilize his Teleportation came up, but he rejected it, since if he was ever in a compromised position, they'd have no means of conventional travel.

While Max felt like he was just holding out, Wendy pointed out a means of getting to Crocus; a traveling band, known simply as the "The Celebs" who dressed fabulously akin to actual famous actors and thespians known throughout Fiore. They were in the middle of a tour, and take their Airship as a means of marketing their names and also moving from place to place to perform en masse.

Once they took off, Wendy felt relief that she was up in the air and not moving along the ground. For whatever the case, she felt more comfortable high up and the air seemed to fill her lungs with an almost serene sensation. It also seemed to taste like sugar as she looked out of the guest room of the airship she was staying in. While the festivities of the band kept them all entertained, they avoided discussing the topic of the mission outright. None of them knew why but, even after mustering the gumption to travel at once, it was likely the team didn't know what to expect or how to properly prepare for such a meeting with the king, no less.

However, reaching the mountains, all of them got to see the capital hanging in the vista; a wondrous site to behold for sure.

Crocus, better known by the citizens as the Flower Blooming Capital, stood as the largest city in the expansive trading hub of a nation. Much like its described name, the scale of its architectural design was inspired off a flower in full bloom. The castle - Mercurius - stood in the epicenter with circular rows upon rows of red-tiled roofs of buildings that swept outward from business to residential and recreational in purpose. Even from their long distance away they could see speckles of colors of the many flowers that adorned the streets and structures, giving it a vast array of colors that made it an earthy and homely beauty that few could contend. And of course, one of its biggest wonders was the western mountain based stadium, the Domus Flau arena, surrounded by four chains that held it aloft while also flanked by four gargantuan statues of meticulously detailed figures of the far-flung past of the city's.

So much to see, it was a night and day difference compared to the Crocus that Wendy remembered seeing in Edolas; there, it was a fabulous city hiding its fleeting magical supply, and here, it boasted a majesty that the other world's counterpart couldn't even come close to.

"Wow!" She exclaimed, her eyes blinking and her mouth hung open as she leaned off the balcony of the airship, joined soon by Max, Charle and Doranbolt. "I've never seen a city so big before!"

"Well I'll be," Max commented, his bowl-cut hair swishing in the breeze much more mildly compared to Wendy's long cobalt tresses. "I never knew the capital would be so...overwhelming."

It just dawned to the young Slayer that what Max said likely indicated he hadn't seen what she did in Edolas.

Turning her head to the beige haired man with a curious look in her brown orbs, "Have you...never been to the capital?"

"Pffft, who me?" Max guffawed dismissively, waving away while a wry smile affixed to his face. "I don't think any of us hicks ever stepped foot in a city that fancy before. Naw, I think only the Big Three, and maybe some of the old timers and the master ever went to the capital. Usually for business, of some kind or another."

"Ohhhhh," Wendy awed, getting a grasp of just how little westward those in Fairy Tail did their business.

"It looks like it hasn't changed much," Doranbolt noted aloud, breaking the reverie between the other Fairy Tail members. Looking back at them, he gave a sheepish grin as he mentioned with a scratch of his chin, his left ear's earring jingling as he spoke. "I used to run errands and reported here on occasion."

"What kind of errands?" Max inquired with a raised brow.

"The Council kind," Charle intercepted with a huff, causing the scarred man to chuckle nervously with Wendy.

"Ah, I guess that makes sense," The brownish-blonde remarked, running his hand through his hair as he looked back at the capital. "Still, a trip out here must have been a cinch with that teleportation magic of yours."

"On my own, yes. But as I explained, it would be a handicap for you - including I - to rely on me for transportation. At least this way we can enter the city without raising a fuss as traffic into the capital is usually regulated pretty strictly," Doranbolt explained as neutrally as he could.

"Still doesn't make me like the idea of taking two whole days to get here," Max grumbled, looking over his shoulder at the ritzy dressed musicians and singers still playing in the background. "I...am starting to miss the peace and quiet."

"We should be there soon," Doranbolt encouraged, looking down to Wendy with a smile. "Once we get there, we'll meet with the king and then decide where we should stay for the night before our next plan of action is invoked."

"Alright," Wendy nodded, hiding her fatigue with a brighter smile than she had any right showing from the past week of grieving she had done. The teleporter didn't remark, simply smiling in return as best as he could. Charle looked with concern at Wendy and Max furrowed his brows, wondering just exactly what they were in for.

Upon landing the airship, the band gave their farewells to the team and they took a short hike down the designated landing zone near the base of the mountain to the nearest gate. Doranbolt gave the guards the letter that was sent to Fairy Tail, showed him his newly minted mark along with the rest of his party and they were easily allowed entry into the city through the massive gates.

It was even more gorgeous up close.

Wendy's eyes sparkled and her open mouth turned into a genuine ear to ear smile.

Flowers. Flowers of all kinds were everywhere. Roses, lilies, turnips, lilacs, and many more in beautiful arrangement were adorned in any place they can. Beds filling the front of residences, pots on window sills, wreathes on balconies and even the edges of the tiled roofs were colorfully assembled with swathes of the decorative flora. The tiled roads were speckled with arrangements of floral designs with varying colored hues that were in conjunction of each other in sweeping patterns down the streets. As the wind filled the streets, petals danced in the air, creating an enchanting vista with the Sun still high in the sky that gleamed all of the splendorous view they've embalmed themselves with.

And just as there were colors surrounding them, people were filling the streets in numbers that made Magnolia feel small. Dressed in far better garbs and in fashion of what was currently vogue, they displayed jewelry, silk and fashionable tailored leather and even some in bristling armour. Tourists of lands near and far mingled with the city's populace, and those of the not too far away Fiore citizens of which made a good number that Wendy found herself among.

"Man, this feels a bit much," Max remarked with a nervous chuckle, bobbing his head and sliding from side to side to avoid the people that walked past him on either side. "Here I thought the guild was crowded, or Magnolia. But this? I've never seen so many people!"

"There certainly feels like quite the bustle," Charle remarked, floating casually beside Wendy, her wings making the occasional flutter to course correct her small body to be in sync with Wendy's altitude. "Keep close to me so you don't get lost."

"T-Thanks, Charle," Wendy commented with a sheepish smile.

"Hey!"

They all stopped in place, their heads turning in unison at a man who stopped them in the middle of the crowd. Dressed in far more simpler tunic of a black suit jacket and long grey pants, the man was holding a newspaper in one hand and had a clean shaven angular shaped head.

"Are you...Fairy Tail Mages?" The man inquired, causing some of the passer-biers to stop their movement and begin casting gazes at the four.

"Uh...I...ah," Wendy attempted to form words, but found the courage sapped under so much attention.

Max, despite being overwhelmed by the proximity of the people, stepped up and smiled confidently. Dragging a hand through his bowl cut hair, he thumbed at his face and nodded with sincerity, "Yeah, believe it or not, we are from Fairy Tail. In the flesh. Anything we can do for you will have to wait cause we have business with the king."

Doranbolt felt himself wince, and Charle closed her eyes as the people surrounding them suddenly swelled to double, and triple the amount as murmuring and talking began anew.

"If you really are Fairy Tail," The man spoke, unfurling the newspaper and holding up the paper for them all to say, "Can we really count on such a weak Guild?!"

It was enough to make Max's confidence do a one hundred eighty spin, and his body lurched back. Doranbolt began to sweat and Wendy paled. Charle's eyes widened as she flew up to look at the text up close for herself.

"FAIRY TAIL LOST AT SEA?"

\- Fairy Tail, the reported strongest guild of Mages in Fiore, has been through some incredible things. From having a strife against the nationally expanding Phantom Lord, to a mass panic within Magnolia formed by one of its former members, and then helping bring down one of the infamous Balam Alliance's Dark Mage Guilds, the Oracion Seis, they have been through thick and thin. But now, from reliable sources it has been confirmed that the guild's old founder home of Tenrou Island is where they were seen last; until it was destroyed by an unknown specter. While word from the Council refuses to comment, speculation runs wild. Magic gone awry? Natural disaster? Bard Karma? Or was it even the mythical dragons? Whatever the case may be, the bulk of Fairy Tail's best and brightest have vanished under the merciless waves within the sea south of Fiore. All but one have been reported to have vanished, though this survivor is not famous one nor publicly adored; simply named Wendy Marvell. Can one survivor be worth the bulk of a beloved and profitable organization? We think not, and it is likely the guild's end is sooner than anyone thinks...-

And, beside the front page article, was a picture of Wendy, somehow caught amidst sometime not long after she had joined the guild with Charle hanging not far out of frame.

"You're Wendy Marvell, aren't you?" The man spoke, almost accusingly at her with his rhetorical question. As Wendy felt herself shrink, Charle backed up to hide her face from the man as he walked up aggressively towards her. "Erza Scarlet, the _Titania_, is dead and you're still here! How dare you come here in person, spreading lies like coming to meet with the king! You're a nobody!"

"Master Makarov is gone, and she survived? That's just unfair."

"Give me back Mirajane!"

"Where's Mystogan? Was he reported to be out at sea too?! Tell me he's not gone!"

"This is all because you guys kicked out Laxus! Bring him back and fix this!"

"I..." Wendy felt herself buckle at the knees, her eyes dilating as her breathing began to become sporadic. Her chest clenched and her hand reached for her blouse's front as she began to feel her head spin. "I-I didn't...I didn't want to..."

"Give us Fairy Tail back!"

"Go look for them!"

"Why are you even here?!"

"Get lost-!"

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry," She began to choke out, her eyes filling up with moisture as her voice became hoarse and pinched at the base. "I wanted to stay with them...b-but I was afraid...I'm sorry..."

"Are you crying? What a weakling!" The man spoke aloud, turning to the distressed to angry crowd. "Let's show this pathetic excuse of a mage she's not welcome here in the heart of Fio-"

In an instant, the man was suddenly feeling himself thrown back by a loud CRACK! His face was indented by the shape of a fist, his paper fluttering into the air while he shoved past a few bystanders and the crying shifted as they'd see the perpetrator.

"SHUT UP! ALL OF YOU!" Max hollered, his face beading sweat and his eyes threatening to overflow with tears. "Do you think we like it that they're gone?! You have no clue, not at all!"

"Shut up, nobody-"

"No, _you_ shut up!" The beige haired man pointed at a woman who had spoken, catching her off guard by how brazen he was behaving. Gesturing to Wendy, he kept a gritted expression while holding back his tears as he spoke impassioned. "Wendy is my friend, and a part of my family in Fairy Tail. Even if its just one, we should be happy that she's come back from the jaws of oblivion. Even if the rest of my family is gone, she is still here! So knock off with berating her; she has nothing to feel sorry about so snap out of it, or I'll come at you with the pride of a real Fairy Tail Mage!"

"M-Max," Wendy hiccuped, her eyes glimmering behind the reddened cheeks that had formed from her overwhelmed emotional state.

"Y-Ya bas-ulk!" The angular faced man muttered, his hand holding his swollen jaw as he comically stumbled back to his feet. "Y-Ya hit m-ay!"

"Oh no..." Charle whispered.

"G-G-GUARDS! G-GUARDS! A-Y BEHN AS-ULT-ED!"

In a split instant, the nervous scarred man grabbed hold of Max's back and pulled him towards the others so he'd get a half-wrap hold with his arms. Just as quickly as the crowd saw and remarked on the existence of Fairy Tail mages, they'd instantly see them disappear out of thin air. Remarking on the event, they all looked around while guards armed with enchanted spears walked up and broke up the crowd.

All the while, in the shadow of a proximate alley, stood a small girl of spritely stature with orange frayed hair and a sleeveless jacket covering her lithe form. Placing finger-less gloved fingers up behind her head, she glanced at her shadow and gave a shrug, waltzing away; till she disappeared in the dark, as if she never existed to begin with.

* * *

"Gah!" Max exhaled, finding himself squatting on a patch of grass in comparison to the tiled ground he was expecting himself to fall on.

"W-Where are we?" Wendy asked, her eyes still blurry from tears she was attempting to dry with her bare arms. Her green-diamond dress swished as she stood herself up, her head looking at what seemed to be a circle of water separating the rest of the city and where she was standing. Turning around she'd almost double back and eyes bulge out as she'd see a massive structure that could only be one thing; the castle, Mercurius.

"S-S-So big!" She squeaked out as Doranbolt slowly stood himself up.

"Sorry I didn't act sooner, Wendy," The Slayer then heard the scarred man speak. She'd see his head hang as his face was still pale and covered with moisture that ran down the side of his marred temple. "They were just citizens with harsh feelings lashing out at you. I'm...sorry I couldn't do anything to protect you."

Wendy didn't speak. She knew he was lamenting that he couldn't silence them with gusto that she had come to expected from the likes of Natsu, Erza or even Gray. The man couldn't fill the void, and she had to come to terms with that.

"It was probably for the best you didn't do anything rash," Charle spoke, dusting off her white skirted lower body as she looked over her shoulder at him. "Someone needs to be the level headed one and keep their cool."

"H-Hey! I thought you'd compliment me!" Max remarked with a turn on his heels and a raised hand. "Why the lecture?"

"We can't afford to be caught in a domestic, regardless of how uncouth people are behaving towards us," The Exceed turned, crossing her paws over her chest as she stared up at the man. "If we were arrested for a brawl you caused, we wouldn't ever see the king and we might even lose this opportunity; because you lost your cool."

"I-I can't believe I'm being lectured by a cat-!"

Huffing, Charle turned towards the castle at large and saw a group of royally garbed guards of yellow-blue cloth uniform walk towards them. Flanking a man with steel armour and sharp features with a wild set of black hair on his head and armed with a goatee, he strode up to the group of Fairy Tail mages and gestured for the men to stop just behind him.

"My name is Arcadios, Chief of the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron," The man introduced himself with a curt nod, gesturing to Doranbolt and the others with one hand. "I take it you are Fairy Tail mages, here on request by the king?"

"We are," Doranbolt replied, ensuring Max wouldn't say a word out of turn.

"That is...good to hear," He hesitated, averting his gaze before returning it stoically. "I'm sure you're aware of the news that's spread, by now. Your guild is not as favorable as it once was. Perhaps the king has chosen out of turn from ignorance of recent events-"

"We can do it!" Wendy stepped up, surprising the others as she barely kept herself from revealing the emotional turmoil inside of herself. With hard brown eyes staring up at the dubious expression of the man, her hands balled up at her sides and she said with certainty. "We won't fail."

"I'll hold you to that, for your guild's sake," The Chief spoke, nodding to the guards and they in turn turned about on heel to begin marching the way to the gate. "I'll escort you. It is unfortunate his majesty isn't available for a meeting at this time but time is of the essence due to the delicacy of this matter. His daughter will attend this meeting in his stead."

Exchanging a few looks a mixture of emotions was filled between the four. Hope. Excitement. Happiness. Fear. Uncertainty. Caution. And of course...Doubt.

They had no way of knowing if they could back up their words with results. But, until they knew what made this an S Class Job, they'd never know what they couldn't achieve.

Following the broad-shouldered, armoured man and his assortment of guards, the four found themselves graced by the long wide halls of the castle's interior. Paintings adorned the outer corridors with drapery of crimson and beautiful enamored windows. Farther inside they'd move into the throne room itself, currently occupied by a lithe but developed woman on the seat.

Dressed in a short white with green trim dress, the woman looked young, barely much older than Mirajane and Erza appeared to have been. With a crown of gold with a diamond-shaped ruby gem affixed at its center over her bangs-covered forehead, she possessed a necklace of silver with a blue jewel on its center. Flanked by similar dressed guards that escorted the mages inside, she looked impatient but soon replaced her irritated expression with one of a welcome expression on her face.

"Ah, the Fairy Tail mages have arrived!" She exclaimed excitedly, sitting upright on her father's throne with glee. "I was worried you wouldn't come...after, well...the news broke."

Arcadios bowed and gestured to the mages to do the same. As they gave a formal bow of their own, they approached a few more steps and then addressed her more formally.

"Your grace, it is great to make your acquaintance," Doranbolt spoke ahead of them, placing a hand over his chest as he announced to her. "Though I am not as tied to the guild as heavily as those beside me, I think I speak for all of us that I am grateful that you made the time for our audience."

"Please, it is I who am happy to see you came all this way even after your guild has experienced such hardships so recently," The Princess spoke, her verdant hair moving luxuriously across her bare shoulders and neck as she shook her head with dismissal. Looking to Wendy, she gave her a nod of respect her way. "I am pleased to hear at least one had survived the tragedy. I won't speak of it since the Council has deemed it a classified matter, but I do hope the fate of your guild is unraveled and perhaps we can all move past it."

"I...thank you," Wendy hesitated, though formed a weak smile as she bowed respectfully to the princess once again.

"Now, onto matters," The royal blooded teenager spoke, her face becoming a more stoic and business oriented mask to deal with their current transaction. "I'm not sure you've been made aware, but the bounty on this job is very high for good reason. Have you come to any conclusions as why that is?"

Looking to one another, they began to ponder what had been lingering in the back of their heads.

"Is it because this isn't strictly a matter involving Fiore?" Charle inquired thoughtfully.

"That's correct," Hisui remarked with a chaste grin that vanished as quickly as it came. "This gang, you see, is quite notorious for its effective ability of targeting various nations of their most prized possessions. Specifically, they are after the treasuries belonging to the monarchies, and have made no secret they have a special kind of prejudice to those of the ruling bodies of these various countries."

"Why do they have such a beef with royals, if you don't mind me asking?" Max inquired a furrowed brow.

"We have no idea," The Princess confessed. "While attempts have been made to impair their progress, nothing has come close to stopping them. They've stolen precious artifacts, jewels of countless worth and many forms of physical currency. We don't know where they're redistributing them or if they're keeping a hoard close at hand or far away. The only thing we know is that the less fortunate towns and cities based on the victimized leadership sudden get anonymous 'donations' that give them a wave of temporary relief."

"Are they...really that bad?" Wendy inquired, almost wincing at the looks she got from the Chief and the guards standing nearby. "I mean. They're not doing a good thing, stealing from people. But, they're giving it away to others. I don't understand how they can be solely terrible if they-"

"You must believe in the story of the Generous Robin, yes?" The Princess inquired, cutting off any further postulation from the Sky Dragon Slayer. When she shook her head, the princess smiled and looked up at the glamorous ceiling and began to recall it from memory. "There was a crook with a generous heart, you see. A folktale passed down for hundreds of years to those bearing the hood or guile of the robin, a bird known for mischievous gifts and thefts alike. This figure of local myth has always been a hero to the people who feel they are disenfranchised or suffer on hard times, believing that the Generous Robin will always save them when they need it most. It is a misguided sense of dependency, and something not to put faith in."

"O-Oh," Wendy weakly replied, feeling a bit meek after being talked down to as if she really was a child; despite that she knew she was about to turn thirteen in the next month or so.

"Its fine to believe in fairytales, especially given in what your guild represents, but these are no myths but actual brigands," Hisui remarked, her voice turning icy as her eyes looked from Max to Doranbolt for emphasis. "Lives have been taken, and many injuries to those who try to stop them, or just happen to be in the way. Regardless of their intentions the hoard they've accumulated isn't equally distributed. They are pocketing the large sum of it, likely for their own selfish gain. They must be stopped, and that is why every wronged royalty has put in a commission for this special job."

"Every royalty?" Doranbolt suddenly gawked, his eyes widened and his mouth slackened. "Then, that means-"

"The whole fifty billion is an accrued lump sum by Fiore, Bosco, the Seventh Kingdom, Stella and Desierto," The blue blooded, viridescent haired girl replied seriously. "It is a handsome reward to deal with a serious threat. Though we were deliberating on who we were to ask for aid next should Fairy Tail be not up to the task; because the Robin Hoodlums may end up damaging Fiore that will hurt all mage guilds for the foreseen future."

"What do you mean?" Max asked, his eyes blinking curiously. "No offense but, this is just your treasury. How does this harm the rest of the country?"

"A fair question, Max Alors, to which I have another question to pose to you," The princess posed, placing one leg over the other as she looked at him curiously. "How do mages get jobs?"

"Uh...we get them from job boards," He replied simply.

"And who puts jobs on the job boards?" She persisted.

"People who want mages to help with jobs, obviously," The beige haired man shrugged. "People from all over Fiore, local and distant."

"How do you think they can afford that?"

"Uh," Max scratched his chin, trying to think aloud. "Because...we...have a good...economy?"

"Crude, but not inaccurate," The princess replied, returning her gaze back to the others. "We in Fiore pride ourselves in being a very trade competitive nation when it comes to our magical produce to share with the rest of the continent. And from that trade we have kept our kingdom from levying a moderate tax, allowing citizens a much easier lifestyle and keeping trade mostly free to the common man. But that is only possible so long as the coffers of the kingdom stay in good care. If we were out of a large amount, the value of Jewels will be arbitrarily inflated, taxes will rise and businesses will not flourish as much. Meaning-"

"-less jobs to mage guilds," Doranbolt said aloud what Charle, Max and Wendy all thought at the same time with similarly wide eyes. "With the guild in the state it is, we need every job we can get. But, if we get even less than what we can afford then-"

"Fairy Tail really will be history...!" Max exclaimed, his face caked in sweat as his hands shook at his sides.

"Now you see why the situation is so dire," Hisui remarked with a grim smile. "The Robin Hoodlums, no matter their intentions, are hampering the entire economic well-being of every nation's royalty they attack. Though relief will come to the less unfortunate, those they don't even deem as needy will soon become as such due to a lack of business, value in trade and increase in taxes to help recoup the damages done by these criminals. And once they have what they want, they'll move onto other game, and continue this endless cycle of theft and suffering. It must end here, in Fiore, before they do anymore damage to the rest of Ishgar!"

Standing up, the princess did something that made Arcadios, the guards and the mages all look on in shock as she bows to the four of them.

"I beg of you, as heir to the throne of Fiore, please do all that is in your power as Fairy Tail to end this madness!"

A sense of tension rose from the pregnant silence that was only marginally helped by the sound of breathing, muttering and exchanges of glances with clinking of armour. Doranbolt felt at a complete loss for what would be the most appropriate reaction. His confusing relationship with the guild didn't help matters as he didn't do well with people and had a better time misleading others rather than convince them. Max was out of his depth, and beyond his bluster of confidence, he knew he wasn't up to the task that was being asked of him. Even Charle felt this was a mistake, and that perhaps they shouldn't have come this far to disappoint such a passionate youth, princess or not.

But Wendy, beyond all of the turmoil still swirling inside of her, chose to take a step forward.

"We will stop them, your grace," Wendy spoke, her voice not shaking nor hollow, as her brown eyes met Hisui's surprised jewels for irises. "And we'll give back the stolen treasures to the kingdoms they've wronged. That I promise you."

* * *

Team Wendy's audience with the Princess of Fiore was brief and to the point, but it told the nascent group of Fairy Tail mages everything they needed to know. Far more than simply the reputation of the Fairy Tail Guild was riding on the success of their first ever S-Rank mission — should they fail, the society of mages, and everyone who depended on their support, would be disrupted. It was hard to say that, as the group retired to their lodgings to rest and prepare for the next day, that they felt absolutely no pressure.

The Royal Family of Fiore graciously agreed to provide rooms to the Fairy Tail mages within the castle, partially as a kind gesture of accommodation for the mages they had summoned all the way to Crocus, and partially to make combating the thieves that much easier. As Arcadios was explaining to the group before he showed them to their rooms, the mages sleeping within the castle itself would make it easier to call on them when the thieves attacked and the wizards' talents were needed.

Wendy caused quite a stir, however, when she insisted to Arcadios — who was quite insistent towards the opposite — that Doranbolt sleep in her room, rather than get a room to himself. The young man tried to defend himself from the suspicious stares of Arcadios' soldiers; the matter was quickly shelved, however, when Charle had the stroke of brilliance to ask for a cot to be brought in. Doranbolt heaved a sigh of relief that he would not be forced to defend himself against a gaggle of soldiers, and inwardly thanked Charle for her quick-thinking.

Only when everyone had been settled into their guest rooms — Wendy and Charle had been given the largest of the lot as a courtesy, while Max had been given a slightly smaller but no less luxurious room on the floor above — did the quiet fall upon the castle. Beyond the normal comings and goings of the royal affairs, nothing seemed out of place. Max was fast asleep in his room, and within her room, Wendy had fallen to sleep as well. The sheets were drawn tightly around her, as if she thought the cloth would keep her safe, and though she shivered, she did not wake.

Doranbolt lay awake on his cot, hands wrung together, head down. He almost appeared to be in penance, and yet he was simply staring at the floor. _I'm officially a member of Fairy Tail now...and I'm here with them in Crocus, on an S-Rank mission to protect mage society as the world knows it._ No matter how many times he rolled this over in his head, it simply didn't sound right. He was the Magic Council's Doranbolt, was he not? Yet something Macao had said about him being undercover had struck a chord in the back of his brain...it was something he knew had been there, but when Wendy had broken down crying in his arms, had dissolved into nothing.

_This indecisiveness is only going to endanger our mission, _Doranbolt thought firmly. _I am Doranbolt of Fairy Tail...and Wendy's protector. I will repay the debt I owe her...that I owe to this Guild. Even if I must act as a member truthfully this time._

"You're thinking a bit too hard, Doranbolt," Charle's crisp voice caught Doranbolt's attention, snapping him out of his reverie. The Exceed had flown back inside from an opened window, her white fur mixing with the subtle moonlight and casting a brilliant glow over her body. She landed neatly onto the man's cot, her wings fading away, and she plopped herself down. "I just completed a full circle around the castle; no sign of anyone."

"That's a relief," replied Doranbolt. "We might have an easy night then." His stern eyes fell on Wendy, who shuddered and jerked in her sleep. "Wendy's sleep hasn't been a restful one...I'd want to be able to focus solely on her tonight, without dragging her into a fight with thieves right off the end of one of her night terrors."

"You..." Charle gazed at him, half-shocked, half-impressed.

"What is it?"

"Nothing," replied Charle quickly. "I'm just glad to see I was not mistaken in sparing you the wrath of the palace guards by requesting your separate bedding."

Doranbolt actually chuckled slightly. "I appreciate you clearing up that misunderstanding. It was a small favour, but I'll pay you back eventually."

"You can pay me back by protecting Wendy," Charle's response was quick and firm.

"...That goes without saying," Doranbolt replied without hesitation.

"Thank you," Charle muttered. Doranbolt's ears picked it up, and he smiled all the same.

Wendy's two protectors watched her dutifully, taking turns to gain the brief respite of sleep in shifts as the night lost its youth. The moonlight began to shift its angle when Doranbolt, who had taken his turn to shut his eyes and sleep while Charle kept a watchful eye out, tossed in the cot. His sleep was far from restful, but actually having a proper place to lay his head — as opposed to sleeping on the floor at the foot of Wendy's bed, as he had taken to to ensure she was free from night terrors — was easing his shuteye.

It was when the young man was beginning to fully drift off into sleep that his ears exploded under the force of a bloodcurdling shriek. Doranbolt sat bolt upright, scanning the room instantly. Charle's fur bristled, the sound of the shrieking ending the Exceed over the edge. It dawn on the two of them immediately who the source of it was; Wendy, who was sitting up, clutching her soaked sheets, her body covered in a sheen of sweat. She was panting as if she'd just run a mile, tears stinging her eyes.

"Charle...Doranbolt...please tell me you're here...!" Her vision was muddled from the tears, and sight came difficulty to her. When Doranbolt and Charle had rushed to her side, Wendy's breathing began to pace even, and she calmed down. "I'm...sorry...! It happened again...I saw it. Everyone gone...in a flash of light...and I was alone!" Wendy found she had to force the words out, as her voice caught in her throat when she tried to explain.

Surprising both Doranbolt and Charle, Wendy grabbed hold of his shirt, clutching Doranbolt tightly as she began to cry afresh. Her tears stained his clothes, but Doranbolt did not rebuke her, nor did he try and shake her off. He simply let the girl cry, gingerly placing his hands on her shoulders, almost as if he feared the contact; yet he still wanted to comfort the girl, refusing to push her away.

"Do you...have nightmares too?" Wendy hiccuped into his shirt, her voice muffled only slightly.

_Do you have nightmares too?_ The question stuck Doranbolt like a physical blow. And he knew the answer. "Yes," he replied quietly. "Every night." His own guilt-rattled mind tormented him whenever he sought the solitude of sleep. The sight of Acnologia, rushing across the sky, the faces of all the people he could have saved — he, a member of the Magic Council who had let the innocent and guilty alike be purged by fate — and the sight of a brilliant white light on the horizon.

This shocked Wendy enough that she pulled away from his torso, reddened eyes widening as they met Doranbolt's narrower ones. The young Dragon Slayer hadn't been so ignorant to believe that Doranbolt wasn't carrying his own baggage, but he always seemed so strong and self-assured. He was the rock she was relying on, and to hear that he too had his own nightmares of the incident shocked her...but also made her feel a closer kinship with Doranbolt than ever before. "You do...really? How do you...deal with them?"

Doranbolt shook his head. "We're still not so far removed from the tragedy that I can say I have. Truth be told, I might never get over them. But I just deal with them when they come, that's all."

"...Oh..." The disappointment in Wendy's voice was clear, striking through Doranbolt's heart. Wendy had been searching for an answer; she wasn't to be rid of this pain.

Gripping her shoulders, perhaps more tightly than initially intended, Doranbolt kept his eyes locked to Wendy's. "But you're not _me_, Wendy. You'll get over this in time. Being so young helps give you the benefit of learning how to cope as you mature." He chose his words carefully, deliberately, putting meaning behind each of them. He could not let Wendy suffer like this. "And with such good friends still in the Guild, I'm sure your family will help look out for you."

"T-Thanks, Doranbolt," Wendy rubbed her eyes, letting the remainder of the tears smear the back of her hand. "It helps..talking to someone about all this. It really does."

"Don't mention it," replied Doranbolt.

The atmosphere shifted almost immediately, and the trio were frozen by the sudden tremor, unable to think coherently. The ground felt as if it was moving, the castle walls shaking, and a noise comparable to thunder rang out throughout the walls of the building. For a moment, the idea that an earthquake was the source of the tremors passed through everyone's minds, and only when the sounds became discernible as explosions did the truth come to light. Doranbolt realised it first.

"We need to get Max! The castle is under attack!"

* * *

**Mercurius Exterior**

The siege outside of the Mercurius Castle had begun; the suddenness of a late night assault had caught the regular castle guard completely off balance. Whatever was going on, it was quite clear the result was chaotic; a multitude of armoured soldiers had rushed to the entrance of the guarded gates, brandishing weapons, only to find themselves sent flying backwards. Stepping forward was a well-dressed man, standing tall at a height of 213 centimetres at minimum; his most prominent feature was a pronounced chin, coupled with a stern stare and auburn hair combed backwards. He would not have looked out of place at a dinner party, but he certainly stood out standing in the middle of fallen bodies.

Even more striking, however, was the arm he raised; rather than a regular human arm, connected from his shoulder joint forward appeared to be a half of a naginata.

"This is disappointing!" bemoaned the man, his voice a deep baritone that rumbled with every vocalisation. "I was given permission to lead the assault on you pitiful fools and _this_ is how I am greeted?! Pathetic!"

"W-Who the hell are you?!" stammered one of the soldiers, undignified as he lay flat on his back.

"Is there any point in answering the question of a dead man?" inquired the giant man, sauntering over with a gait bearing resemblance to a giraffe. In an instant, his naginata-like hand sliced the air. The sound of squelching blood accompanied the sight of a head arching skyward; the inquisitive soldier drew breath no longer. Each and every soldier who gathered themselves to their feet felt their breath hitch. They had no sense of magical power, but they could tell he was a mage simply by the unnaturalness of his appearance.

"W-We won't let you pass...!" shouted one of the soldiers.

"Our orders from Lord Arcadios are to waylay the intruders!" declared another.

A grin split the giant's face. "You have spirit! I may have some fun with you all yet!" The naginata-arm vanished in a rush of light, and the man knelt down — a considerable feet for someone of his height — reaching for the discarded sword of his fresh victim. "Decently tempered steel...the balance impeccable...guards like yourselves are always fitted with decent equipment..." He placed a hand on the hilt of the blade; this action was accompanied by a brilliant glow, and within seconds, the weapon itself had vanished. Where once had been a forearm, it was nothing but a finely crafted blade that glittered in the moonlight. The giant raised the blade to his own face, his grin never fading. "Wiping out trash like you won't take me long, no matter how spirited you are!"

Sudden realisation dawned on one of the guards. It was accompanied by a violent shudder. "Wait! I know him! He's a wanted criminal! You're—"

Whatever the man's name was, the word never escaped the guard's lips. He was the first to fall to the giant's new weapon; blood splashed, flecking the grass and dyeing it red. In turn, each and every guard was slaughtered despite their best efforts for defence. The man was relentless, giving no quarter as he cut down each and every armoured simpleton.

High above the exterior yard, balancing with irregular dexterity was a beautiful young woman. Her hair, the colour of candy floss, flowed in the gentle breeze of the night, and her attire — the very definition of 'light armour', with a basic breastplate, gauntlets, greaves, a cloth skirt, and a broadsword at her hilt — was in stark contrast to the murderous Prince Charming down below. She heaved a sigh, her crimson eyes observing the movements of her comrade with a measure of distaste. Her pointed ears picked up more sound than necessary; she could feel her stomach turn at the sounds of violence, yet she could not bring herself to despise the man who fought so hard down below. Pity, however, flowed out from her in waves.

Behind her back, oscillating ring of light cycled through various colours; her armoured hands clasped together, spreading outward as the ring settled on a single colour. Vivid azure light spilled from between her palms, bleeding outward through each digit. This light had a very specific effect, one that was the sole reason for her placement in a location such as this. Manifesting against her free hand was the ethereal shape of an ocean shell. She placed it against one of her pointed ears, and within the back of her mind, she felt a connection establish with multiple other individuals.

_My dears..._

The elven woman's voice reached out, covering the entirety of the castle and its ground, yet it only touched the minds of those close to her heart. All motion within the castle slowed; her allies, many of whom were still unveiled, faltered only slightly; they were used to her telepathy, but every now and again, it still gave them pause.

_We have our orders, loves. Please avoid any unnecessary violence...all for the sake of our blue bird. _

A mix of emotions flooded her mind. Irritation. Understanding. Amusement. A smile played on her lips; they truly were like children.

_The preemptive assault is being carried out in Section A-1. Our forward units may proceed into the interior of Mercurius; the treasury is located  
deep in section D-3. The staff is asleep; we are to avoid unnecessary casualties. _Only_ take the lives of the guards who stand in our way. _

The mental connection was terminated, and the woman heaved a sigh. The children were always so rowdy, and she wasn't quite sure it was fair to let her shoulder the responsibility of raising them. _That responsibility should not fall to someone of my role, should it, my blue bird? No, that should fall to you and your Lieutenant... _Her crimson eyes glanced towards the section of Mercurius Castle she knew the treasury to lay. Sending in a small, light squad was always ideal for a proper theft, but she felt that her presence may be needed.

There was a presence within Mercurius Castle. She had felt it when her awareness had been extended throughout the castle, searching for her allies. A presence only too similar to one she knew well. The elf frowned.

"This may not be a simple theft after all."

* * *

**Mercurius Interior, Treasury Chamber**

Arcadios, a statuesque man even under normal circumstances, was now regaled in armour that sharply contrasted his dreary grey standard ordinance. The White Lily Armour was now adorned over his sharply shaped facial features and broad muscular body. Armour platemail with a gleaming silver hue with petal-adorned pauldrons, matching the petals of metal that formed his greaves, and a helmet that covered all but his lower face in the immaculate pale colored metal in the shape of a bird of prey. A head of feathers in bright yellow flourished with a proud mane, a jade cloak wrapped around his neck to flow down in a tapestry of beautiful material like silk as it rivulet around in the air rushing past him; all of this highlighting features that overshadowed the deep forest green undersuit that was worn beneath the heavy plate-mail. With his hands, one on top of the other, resting on golden hilted broadsword with a verdant jewel resting within the pommel; the edge of the double-sides placed in between the tiles that led straight to the vault rearing up behind him.

Standing astride Arcadios were five men, armoured similarly; his division of Knights, the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron.

The vault itself, home to the vast wealth of Fiore's crown royalty, was an immense arching pair of doors. standing behind the Squadron. The trim was that of steel with accented emerald metal akin to vines with blossoming flowers that wrapped itself from the bottom of the seam to rest over top. Within the base was a massive dial, with a key slot resting in its center; each handle being as long as the sword of the man standing in front of it, and thicker than any pike a guard would carry. It truly beheld a glamour and sturdiness one would expect of a gateway leading to the greatest of treasure troves.

_Not a single soul will make it past this spot. On the honour of the His and Her Highness, I swear it,_ thought Arcadios, determined.

A sizzling, firecracker-like sound could be heard from the distance, alerting Arcadios and his knights to suspicious activity incoming. The hallway that loomed out before them was shrouded in darkness, but this darkness was not being pierced by a brilliant orange glow. It cast off an eerie light, illuminating a humanoid figure. As she breached the hallway and into the spacious room that contained the treasury, it was revealed that it was a beautiful, but tiny girl. She had blonde hair, cut short at her neck, wearing what could only be described as an adventurer's outfit; a brown vest, worn over a thin strip of elastic cloth that covered a non-existent bust, with black shorts, hanging loosely and only held up by a thick belt. Around her neck, she donned a crimson cape, and as she moved, her hips swayed. And yet the most noteworthy thing about the young woman wasn't her diminutive build, or her strange attire...

...it was the fact that her hands were cloaked in flames.

"We've only got five of 'em?" grumbled the tiny woman. "Hey Brutalia, you might be disappointed! We ain't got much of 'em here, just a runty bunch of soldiers and a peacock with a sword!"

"Don't you have any finesse, Runt?" a voice, as crisp and beautiful as a bell-chime, yet frigid and cold as a winter gust. "The irony of you, with someone so lacking in womanly charms, calling others 'runt' is quite delicious." The woman came into view, her visage and body aglow, and it revealed the form of a beautiful woman who was practically royalty by looks alone. She was draped in a gown of crimson and ebony, ornately decorated with jewels and roses. It was cut low at the chest, revealing a plump bosom that quivered with each step. Her hair, a deep honey-blonde was worn long, adorned by a wreath of flowers as black as night. Within her hands, she clasped a hand-held fan directly over her face.

"Hello, boys. We're going to breaking through now."

Arcadios gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, his face firm and set. "Not on my life, woman."

* * *

**A/N:**

**Demod20: **

Ah yes! World building! Something wholly lacking from Fairy Tail the farther you read in that I and my co-author are all too eager in correcting. Given how it stole from better properties of similar job descriptions (Naruto's Mission Boards and One Piece Bounties) I took it upon myself to provide a very real and tangibly relatable threat caused by economic upheavel from thefts of such a scale. That and my reinvention of how the tale of Robin Hood is something of a folktale that only downtrodden respect because they have no context of what goes into stabilizing a Feudalistic Society. Giving Hisui this responsibility helps introduce her character sooner, as well as Arcadios, so you can see what kind of people they are _before the asinine Plot of Canon made them bizarros for the sake of 'Suspense' of an inane mystery. Meanwhile, my Co-Author did a damn good job continuing the trend of character development as Doranbolt and Wendy are still dealing with their nightmares in their own ways, encouraging each other as they do. And his introduction of the First Arc's antagonists gave me goosebumps; I can't wait to continue where he left off in the next chapter, forthwith!_

**LastationLover5000: **_Now this was a very fun chapter! My counterpart is brilliant with things like this; we're both fans of Magi, so being able to do some world-building that coherently explains how the flying fuck Fairy Tail's society works. Because I'll be honest, Hiro was not the biggest fan of world-building. He made slight stabs at the start but never tried any harder after that. Mercifully, as I said, both of us are fans of Magi, and my counterpart is much better at explaining things than I am, so here we are. I enjoyed writing my section, especially since it was a combination of emotional development and character introductions. I'm looking forward to our next chapter, and we'll see you all soon!_


	5. Little Blue Bird

**Chapter 5 - Little Blue Bird**  
**Written by Demod20 and LastationLover5000**

* * *

There was very few reasons why the castle would be suffering an attack so soon after they had taken the job handed out to them by Fiore's crown royalty. Doranbolt figured that the most likely conclusion, of them all, was that the band of thieves had struck and they were just lucky enough to be poised in a position to help repel their assault. There was little time to consider any other alternatives but to search Mercurius from top to the bottom and root out the perpetrators of this attack and hopefully stop them from succeeding in their endeavors.

In a split instant, the three had moved past obstacles such as floors and doors, appearing instantly in their fourth companion's room. Max Alors was in a disheveled heap, seemingly shifting with discomfort with a facial feature of someone wrestling with his own personal demons. But due to the circumstances at hand, Doranbolt grasped the man by his collar and shook him urgency.

"I-I didn't do it!" Max Alors woke up with a start, his body flinched defensively and his face caked in cold sweat.

"Max, its just us," Wendy implored with a scared look on her face. "I'm sorry we woke you, but the castle is under attack!"

"Oh!" The sandy-blonde haired man cleared his throat, wiping away the sweat and sighing with relief he wasn't to be arrested. "Wait, the castle is under attack? By who?"

"That's what we're going to find out," Charle responded, her face forming a pensive expression as she floated passively with her wings spread out from her small, rounded back. "I didn't have a vision about this so this whole thing feels uneasy. Things are happening too quickly and we have no real information about what the Robin Hoodlums are like or what their abilities are."

"We can't stand by and let them hurt people!" The cobalt haired Slayer exclaimed with clenched fists, a determined glint shining in her eyes that made Max stare transfixed and Charle nod with a slight smile. "They must be stopped!"

"Agreed," Doranbolt nodded. Eyes closed, he placed a pair of fingers up to his right temple and began to stretch his senses outward. "I feel a number of magical signatures inside. Larger ones are in key points of the fortress, while a good deal of the rest are in packs of four to five. Two are in the lowest levels, two above us, and another is within the main level. In total there seems to be almost thirty or more of them."

"Damn, we're sorely outnumbered here!" Max hissed between clenched teeth, his hands shaking at his sides. "I'm starting to feel underqualified for this job..."

"None of us are qualified," Charle bluntly commented, one eye closed while the other stared straightly at the nervous beige haired mage. "But we're here because Fiore - no, Fairy Tail needs us. We have no choice but to push forward, no matter how hard it gets."

"I-I know, alright! I'm just a bit freaked out, is all!" He snapped back, his hands raised up to gesture with emphasis. "No offense, but there's only three of us. And I don't know about you, but I've never taken a job higher than B on my own for a reason!"

"A-And why don't I count?!" Charle began to object, her eyes bulging and a vein bulging across her snow-colored head.

"Because you're a cat that flies!" Max balked.

"I'm an Exceed, not a common cat!" She rebuked fiercely.

"Well excuuuuuuuuuse me! Here I vastly underestimated you because you're clearly so much better than I am!"

"Why you-!"

"We don't have time for this," Doranbolt interrupted with a swing of his hand. His eyes now staring harshly at Max with a glare. "If you don't feel up for it, stay here where its safe. We're going, now and we can't afford to delay for another minute."

"Please, Max," Wendy pleaded, her brown eyes staring up at him, bringing the blue-collared man's face to stunned silence. "I can't do this without help. I'm not brave like you were when you stood up for me. But I have to do it, even though I'm scared. Can you still help, even though you're afraid?"

Grimacing, the brownish-blonde haired man raised his hands to scratch at his scalp fiercely. Lowering them down to his sides he hung forward, and sighed with resignation.

"I can't say no to you, Wendy," He smiled weakly, raising a fist up with forced spirit. "Its time I helped out too! Let's go kick these bandits in the ass!"

"Alright," Doranbolt said as he smiled with relief. "Grab a hold. I'm going to teleport us to the one at main level."

Grasping his hand, Wendy maintained a hardened look while Max placed a nervous hand on the striped shoulder of the former Council agent. And with Charle placing a paw on his other shoulder, the man focused on the signature...

...they shimmered out of the room...

...appearing in the middle of the spacious hallway, leading to the throne room. There, they were greeted by a grim scene that turned Max's stomach and brought out a horrified squeak from Wendy. Armoured guards were left sprawled in bloodied heaps, some twisted in odd angles while others had missing limbs or had their heads removed outright. They numbered up to two dozen, and the sound of fighting had yet to cease as the conflict raged around the outline of a large man while they were continuously being thrown back by the force of his counterattacks.

"This is-!"

"A massacre," The teleporter confirmed with gritted teeth. Tearing his eyes from the abundance of murder, he looked up to see the culprit responsible. He was large, practically standing twice the size of the soldiers he was cutting swathes through. Dressed in a vermilion coat with white ruffled collars matching his handkerchief collar tucked into his jacket while wearing armoured pale white tight leggings that fastened into leather dress shoes. From the wrist up, one could see the gargantuan man had a sword in place of a hand, replicated to be fitted for his length and girth, swinging around to parry the soldiers' own blades and cutting through the pole-handles of spears that were sent to thrust at him.

"Amazing! I've cut so many down and you still haven't given up!" He let out a deep-throated laugh, raising his blood-soaked blade up to his face. In a flash of light, it was replaced by a ichor covered hand; one he dragged a tongue over, lapping it up grotesquely to the disgust and horror of the handful of soldiers left. With a deep groan released from his throat, the timbre of his voice inflected a sadistic hunger as he inquired with a tilt of his pronounced chin. "Come on. Are you all done now that I've cut your comrades down?"

**Death.**

The sight of it brought flashes of harsh memory to the fore of Wendy. Her breathing became strained, shaky even. Eyes dilated and her face paled. Even while Charle turned to look concerned at the girl, she felt something unusual about her. Something was _throbbing _within the Slayer's body, like a crescendo of deep heart beats that compelled something within her core.

"Oh well," The man grinned, raising his arm up, another flash of light and it became from the elbow up the handle to a very large mallet. "I might as well as well smash these bugs into paste!"

"Wendy, let's-"

Doranbolt didn't even have time to speak to the girl before she was gone. In a blast of Wind that ruptured the flooring, she took off in a blue streak of whipping hair with an undercurrent of green from her dress.

Amidst his swing, the murderer barely had time to react as - from his own gaze - he saw the outline of what looked like a white-winged Dragon soaring towards him, made incorporeal from the amassed sudden burst of Ethernano that trailed with the spritely sized girl's frame.

"UNGH!" He grunted aloud, his free arm barely raised to deflect a deceptively powerful but small fist. His heels skid across the floor, the sleeve of his jacket torn asunder and his body stumbling back from the sudden impact. Looking over at the girl as she softly landed onto the floor, her eyes contracted and pupils were sharpened into razors, as a fierce current of wind kicked up around her flourishing dress of green, her hair swirling around with it.

"Where did she come from? I swore I didn't sense her until now," The man thought aloud, looking down at his now exposed arm, seeing a sizable bruise ebbing hissing steam from the point of impact where her fist met his forearm. "She moved so quickly, I didn't have time to dodge," He noted, his eyes looking up at her with narrowed eyes, his voice ebbing a decadent baritone as he began to put the pieces together. "That familiar Magical Aura...could she be one, too?"

"H-Hey-!" One of the guards began to say, the other too stunned to keep supporting his legs as he dropped to his haunches at nearly being pulverized to death. "You're that Mage from Fairy Tail!"

"Yeah, she's the Dragon Slayer!" Another spoke, a smile - for the first time since this chaos unfolded - breached this guard's face, his beard showing teeth as he raised his shattered blade up with joy. "Yeah! She'll kick your ass now!"

"Wendy!" Charle rushed up in a swift flight to hover by her shoulder, her face filled with concern. "You gave me a scare when you rushed up like that! What's gotten into you?"

"No more," She muttered under her breath, barely audible by the roaring current of Wind that she was summoning forth. Eyes transfixed on the large brute in nice attire, observing him as he recomposed himself back up to his substantially larger height. "I won't stand by and watch people die when I could have done something. Not again...no, never again!"

"Wendy..." Her Exceed partner mouthed out, unable to find it in herself to bring her friend in by the reins.

"She's right," Max stepped up, running up to the soldiers and helping one off his haunches while looking to the others. "We got this! Go! There are other places that'll need your help!"

"With our broken weapons?" One of them asked incredulously.

"What good are we?"

"You're _alive!_" Max grabbed one of them by the chainmail collar, pulling him in to show a fierce expression despite the sweat covering his face from the fear he was swallowing. "There's always something the living can do! Go and find help! Go to the armoury to resupply! Do something, _anything_ better than sitting on your thumbs watching like a bunch of scared spectators!"

The large murderer began to sway in long-legged steps, his countenance as if someone was on stilts rather than human appendages. With a humored grin on his face, he raised his hand up-

_SHINK!_

-and in a flash, formed a peerless blade, giving off a subtle hum as it released a majestic glow from the flat of its metallic surface.

"I'll need a higher caliber of weapon to deal with a Dragon Slayer," He rumbled out, swinging his blade to his side. In a blink of his eyes he'd suddenly see a fist rushing straight into his face. A loud crack followed up with the man bending back from the impact.

Max and Wendy would look on with amazement, seeing Doranbolt's body bend in midair, twisting around to throw a foot up at the leaning skull of the large man's skull. When the murderer turned around in spite of his bowed posture, he'd see with surprise as his target vanished, reappearing at his opposite sword-wielding flank to throw a backhanded set of knuckles into his temple. Grunting aloud in pain, he'd finally be thrown off his feet, ending with a teleporting kick straight into his crimson-coated abdomen, sending him veering off into the side of the hall with a loud crash.

"We don't have time to deal with this cautiously," The scarred mage announced as he dropped to his feet, his body bent over in anticipation. "Go to the treasury, everyone. I'll handle this man on my own."

"N-No!" Wendy exclaimed, her Aura lessening to normalcy as she saw the man she had grown close to in the past week. "Come with us! I don't want to lose you too!"

"I swear to you, Wendy," Doranbolt looked over his shoulder, a smile formed on his face despite the current situation. "I will come back to you."

Forcing back her tears with a sniffle, she nodded and turned on her heels, taking off in a run with Charle at her side. Coerced into following Max's orders, the guards made a hasty exit with the Sandstorm Mage turning to take one long look back at Doranbolt before pushing his legs to keep up with his fellow Fairy Tail Wizard.

"Hmmmmm, those were good hits," The teleporter heard, from the dissipating dust of debris from the shattered wall. Up to his full height, he padded dust off his now-one sleeved jacket, taking care to lick away the dribble of blood leaking from the corner of his bruised jaw. "But you sent away my play-thing. That was rude of you."

"I know who you are, _Handsome_, and I know what you are capable of," The Fairy Tail Mage snarled, swinging a hand with declaration. "I won't give you the chance to lay a single finger on her head. Though I may not be in league with the Council any longer, I still am honor bound to bring you down for the injustice you've committed!"

"'In league the Council any longer,' you say...?" The dubbed 'Handsome' criminal spoke. Grasping his jaw, a depraved smile stretched from ear to ear, his chin jutting out as large teeth formed a toothy smile in a hideous sheen of pearly whites. "Not many people know my identity apart from those in the law. And since you're a Mage, that makes you...an ex-Rune Knight!"

Blitzing towards him, the scarred man lunged forward to use a **Direct Line** to catch the man off guard with his magic. But, just as he teleported in to land his punch, he'd find himself rebounded as something far more solid than muscle manifested over his well tailored chest. Wincing at his bruised hand, he looked up to see a densely layered shield formed over his torso, its angular shape conforming over his rippling muscles as if it was grown from his own body.

"I can sense magical energy, Council agent," Handsome boasted, raising his hands up to transform each of them into a pair of blades from the wrist outward. "I won't let you get the better of me again!"

"We'll see about that!" Doranbolt proclaimed as he leaped back into the fray, renewing his battle anew with him.

Farther away, Wendy led the way as she tried to use her senses to compensate for the lack of Doranbolt's magical sensory abilities. From what she could ascertain by smell, the air had a distinct higher magical presence as she maneuvered to one of the stairwells to a higher floor. Doing this, she could figure that the vault or some room of importance was adjacently connected to the throne room's entrance which was why the large mage was causing so much havoc.

"Do you know where you're going?" Max asked from behind.

"I can smell something different than I did the other day up this staircase!" She urged, keeping up her swift run up, forcing herself to sprint at top speed regardless of the gravity wearing on her from the incline of steps she walked upon. "We have to hurry!"

"I know, I know!" He yelled back with disgruntled affirmation.

Reaching a doorway, Wendy lurched her person to open the knob and pull herself outside.

There, she was blocked by a slender, female frame. Bearing pointed ears of the famed race native to the Seventh Kingdom Alliance - also shorthanded to just Seven - the partially armoured woman was about as tall as Wendy, but composed herself in a much more mature countenance as she looked prepared for her arrival.

"I thought I sensed something abnormal scuttling around in the castle," The elf spoke, her ruby eyes blinking with intrigue while her pinkish hair waved with movement due to the halo of blue light that shined behind her head. Floating off the floor's surface but keeping just below the ceiling, she clasped armoured hands together, energy spilling between the metal covered digits. "I'm not a murderer like Handsome, but I'm not going to let you do as you please."

Unfolding her palms, she unleashed a column of blue light, stunning the three by his brilliant glare. As they felt it shine touch them, they felt completely unglued from the ground, forced up into the air as if they weighed nothing.

"W-What?!" Max flailed his arms around. "I can't get back to the ground!"

"Please, stand aside!" Wendy implored, looking less impaired than Max but still held in place by the glow that was shining on her. "I don't want to hurt you, but what you're doing is wrong!"

"I'm sorry. A child like you can't understand what our blue bird is accomplishing," Eris melodically chastised, her countenance as a mother talking down to the girl that Wendy was despite her similar size and stature being identical to her own. "Just leave us in peace and we'll bring no harm to you."

While Max struggled to find any form of footing in the air, Wendy felt herself left with no choice. But the third of them simply doze head first, streaking in a blur of movement that defied sight.

"MAX SPEED!" Charle cried out as she rammed her head straight into the elf's chest. Bowling with the momentum of the blow, she released the passive glow that held them in the air and they summarily dropped back to the floor. Pulling back from the woman's lithe but armoured chest, Charle rubbed her head with a paw as she looked down with a grimacing glare. "You're causing for more damage than you are aware of. And I won't stand by and let you talk down to us while people in this castle are dying!"

"Charle," Wendy spoke aloud with a awestruck smile.

"That was cool, I guess," Max muttered under his breath as he recomposed himself.

"I see I was too gentle," Eris intoned, her eyes glowering as the halo changed hues from Blue to Red. As a crimson light endowed itself over her body she dropped to the floor but a sweltering heat began to be felt by everyone, her armoured hands now wreathed in something akin to a molten quality of luminescence. "If you don't stand down, then I shall use force to bring you to heel!"

"AGH!" Wendy recoiled, finding her body swelling up with heat and her skin feeling the sensation of being boiled.

"This heat-!" Charle gasped, finding it hard to breathe.

"No you don't!"

Eris felt her eyes widen as a column of sand erupted from the man's hands, swerving over Wendy's head and diving straight towards the elf's head. Leaping back, she avoided the blast of earth as it swept the ground with rough, course grains that got everywhere. Looking up, she'd see Wendy regain her countenance as the glow had dimmed on her and Max which whom, despite sweating up a storm, had his arms outstretched with either arm folded over each other.

"Come on, Wendy! Let's team up against this pointy eared thief!" He declared, a smile formed on his face despite how his legs shook beneath himself.

"R-Right," She stammered out, finding a smile work itself onto her face at his fighting spirit. Swinging her arms around, she focused her magical energy with a swirl of light and announced her intention over Max. "Fast wind that runs the heavens... VERNIER!"

"Whoa!" Max felt a sudden rush of teal light swim up from his soles to push up over his bowl hair in a vertical stream of energy.

"And now," Wendy swiveled her hands in the opposite posture, erecting another layer of golden light up over Max. "Power of the stout arms that tears heaven... ARMS!

"An Enchanter?" Eris marveled with wide blinking eyes. "A human girl has this kind of power, at such a young age...?"

"To finish, Protection of the tallest Mountains...ARMOUR!"

"H-Holy-!" Max almost swore aloud, looking down at the three layered enchantment that now wrapped around his body. Grinning with an infused confidence thanks to Wendy's powers, he set his eyes at the awestruck elf. Bending his knees, he kicked off, moving at a swifter speed than he ever felt himself capable of performing in the past. A swirling rotation of sand formed into his palm, and he let out a voluminous shout as he thrust his arm out at Eris. "Sand Wave!"

"Ngh!" Eris grimaced, a pale white light forming from a halo discharged in a column from her palms into a flat wall in front of herself to absorb the brunt of the impact. She saw cracks form within the field of repelling energy, making her blink widely at the attack power coming from the man. Dispelling the light, it shattered and Max jumped up to throw a kick at her that she deftly dodged, and threw a kick that he deflected with a raised arm.

"Ow!" The beige haired man winced out, the flash of light clashing against the three-layered enchanted Aura he was sporting.

"Ow?" The elf questioned aloud, thinking more discreetly to herself. _That should have broken your arm!_

"Take this" Max growled out as he twisted his arms around, forming a layer of sand that swirled around Eris, twisting her in the air. Then, he slammed a fist into an open palm, causing the sand to throw Eris to the ground with a sizable explosion that broke the floor, throwing the elf into a hole out of sight. "SAND REBELLION!"

"That was," Charle began to say, blinking at the massive hole her beige haired companion made. "Excessive..."

"S-She's probably going to not be moving for awhile," Max hesitantly proclaimed, grinning nervously as he looked over his shoulder at Wendy and Charle. "Let's go before she decides to get up sooner than that."

"Right," Wendy nodded, running up towards where Max was and - with Charle's help - flew over the hole while Max pushed himself across the gap with a burst of his Sandstorm. Once on the other side, the they began to run onwards, not bothering to look down at the hole that was crafted by the male wizard.

Down in the impact site, a faint white light radiated around a wincing Eris, whom was face first in a comical crater of her exact shape; including her pointed ears. Pushing herself up, she endowed herself with a blue halo, clapping her armoured hands together as she stumbled back to her feet. Forming a seashell construct, she placed it up over her left face's side and spoke with a concerned voice echoing to the minds of her comrades.

_My dears...it seems we have unexpected guests in the castle.  
One Enchanter with blue hair and a small body, a flying cat of snow colored fur and a blue-collared, beige haired man wielding Sand-like Magic.  
Use caution, they are extremely capable; I'm already making haste to catch up with them._

* * *

**Mercurius Interior, Treasury Chamber  
**  
Runt felt beside herself.

An indignant vein throbbed over her exposed forehead as she turned to face the haughty princess dressed figure that waved her furred fan over her lower face, concealing her proud smirk.

"What did you just say to me, you smug bitch?" She growled out in a low timbre, no longer producing a lighter voice her spunky attitude normally possessed.

"My-My, here I thought the only thing underdeveloped was your chest, not your ears," The woman intoned with a flash of her eyes and a few quick brushes of her fan to enhance her superior inflection of her voice. "You really must be lower tier in every category, aren't you?"

"BITE ME!" Runt snapped, her sparking hands intensifying in flame as she raised her voice to her.

Amidst their squabbling, one of the knights rushed towards her. Moving at an exceptional pace for someone wearing such immaculate armour, the man gave a brief grunt as he swung a two-handed hammer straight down onto Runt's head.

A loud crack split the floor into a pie shaped crater. While flecks of debris seemed to mark the walls, an unseen field deflected them in front of the regally dressed haughty woman. Maintaining her eye contact with the girl, one could see a single hand raised up without her glare breaking from hers.

And in a scraping motion across the flat of the hammer, it released a sizable blast that sent him off his feet, barreling himself to grind on his back in a loud grind. Sparks flew as he skid to a halt in front of his fellow squadron, all looking stunned at the feat that was commenced. Arcadios, however, kept a stoic glare and had an understanding that the small _woman_ was packing considerable magical power.

"Hey!" Runt turned to sideglance at the knight as he staggered up onto his haunches. "I wasn't ready yet. Do you wanna get pulverized that badly?"

"She's small, but she withstood a blow from Jorge like it was nothing!" One of the other knights, this one having a mane of magnificent blonde hair and well defined facial features that wasn't obscured by a helm like his comrades' had. "And that reaction; I swore she didn't even see him coming yet she had keen reflexes superior to ours. What kind of sorcery allows one to fight on par with the likes of us?"

"It doesn't matter," The aforementioned Jorge spoke, supporting himself with a press of the hammer on the ground while rising back to his full height. "She surprised me, but such power won't be enough to scratch our armour. All I need is one hit and a small body like that will be rendered inert!"

"Is that so?" Runt cocked a brow up, a smile playing across her childish face. "If you think yourselves so mighty, why not attack me all at once? I'll show you just how wrong you are!"

"Careful, now," The dress adorned woman fluttered her fan over her face tauntingly. "Even with that magic you might get over your head. Are you sure you want to show off right now?"

"You know what, Brutalia?!" The short blonde woman turned around, raising a sparking hand that caught aflame with a clench of her fist. "I'm going to leave no one for you to play with! They're all mine, you hear me?!"

_That name,_ Arcadios' scowl deepened. _I thought I was just hearing things, but now it said again and I look at her, the more I recognize..._

"Now we know about that Fire Magic, let's pincer her down," The blonde knight spoke quickly.

"Agreed," Jorge snarled, pulling back the hammer till its pommel was level with his armoured neck.

Then, in an instant, the two leaped across the distance with Jorge moving swiftly in a horizontal lunge much to Runt's expectations.

"Too easy!" She reared back her fiery right hand, waiting for the hammer to pendulum sweep on top of her.

It never came.

Instead a bludgeoning thrust threw itself towards her face, forcing her her other unoccupied hand to catch it with a sparking blast that sent the pair flying from each other.

But, from above, the blonde knight had vaulted over Runt's flailing person, landing behind her with a surprisingly soft tap of his boots' soles.

"There's no escape!" The blonde haired knight whispered harshly, swinging his broad sword in a swift slashing arc at the still sprawling woman's petite backside.

It was time for Arcadios to be as shocked as his own men. For in the span of Jorge still skidding back he could see his subordinate cutting faster than the small woman could even find footing in time to react. But, defying her own momentum, she twisted around with irregular dexterity till she landed on the wall on all fours. At the same time the knight struck the ground with a loud clang, she dove head first towards him and folded herself to tuck her chin to her knees. Then, in a forward rolling flip, she'd propel herself by unseen force to spiral kick him in the face with a sickening crack that sent him slamming straight towards Brutalia.

To which the woman gestured her fan, sending him bowling around to comically impale the wall head first in front of her instead. Vibrating fiercely before slumping out of the hole and onto the ground, the blonde knight's face bruised and bloodied for all to see.

"Kenny! No!" One of the knights shouted. "You killed him!"

"You sick bitch!" Another howled with fury.

"Don't be absurd," Jorge remarked, huffing himself back up shakily to his feet for the second time. "He still draws breath, but his consciousness is no more."

_That's one down,_ Arcadios thought with a curl of his lips, showcasing his displeasure at this. _At this rate, can we truly beat them? We are left with few other options..._

"They almost got you that time, and it was only two versus one," Brutalia spoke with a sultry sigh. "I think I should step in right about now."

"I told you to stay out of it!" Runt snapped with gritted teeth and small hands, wreathed in sparking fire, held up antagonistically. "Do you want me to burn you?!"

A haughty chortle released from her throat as she fanned herself even more quickly than before, "You do say the most amusing things, little one!~"

Withdrawing his blade from the ground, the pair of women changed their expressions to one more serious as the leader of the squadron hefted his broadsword by both hands. Adopting a slight bend to the knees, weapon held low, the man's posture showing expertise as well as experience. The barking of his subordinates halted at the sheer sight of action taking place of their own superior.

"It is clear we cannot best them using standard tactics. We will have to use what strength we have to fully assail them from a front they can't overcome by reflexes nor magic alone," The Chief of the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron proclaimed with a challenging ring to his tone. "Together, men!"

The knights let out a united shout, their voices carrying down the hall the bandits came from. They gave skeptical stares, watching them line up and assuming stances similar to their chief. When they calmed, a countenance shifted in the air, not defined by magic but mind over matter.

They weren't going to leave anything to chance. This was their strongest formation under these circumstances.

"Leave this to me, Runt," Brutalia lowered her tone with her words. Runt looked objective but her eyes saw the expression behind the fan she maintained beneath her eyes; a wicked grin that bared her teeth in a chilling concealment of malice that brought her own gait to a halt.

"W-Whatever you say," The short mage replied with a disgruntled grunt, taking a few cautious steps back.

Then, the knights charged in a blur. Jorge brought his hammer to bear in a sideways swing, another knight thrust forth and two others kicked off the walls to bring their weapons down at their foe. Arcadios himself would bring a two-handed three fold combination of upper cut and cross side to side strokes at her.

Each strike, much to their shock, was handily deflected by the red-black dressed Mage's fan. The thrusts bounced back, swords cracking and the edges that swung at her rattled intensely. Her arm was a blur, imperceptible even to the knights' eyes.

"Impossible-!" The avian helmeted leader exclaimed. "Her speed is greater than ours?"

"All done?" Brutalia inquired, her fair face with cherry lips spread sinisterly. A violet aura engulfed her body as she raised her left hand with a malicious intent; as she did so, each of them were held in place, hefted off the ground, and dangled under her thrall. "I'm going to enjoy breaking you, knights of Mercurius!"

* * *

Wendy felt her legs burning as the group continued to make haste; she doubted she'd ever actually run this much before, and in spite of herself, found the action suitably distracting. The castle had a rather irksome structure, but with suitable directions and Wendy's nose, the trio were navigating well.

"How are we doing, Wendy?" inquired Charle, the exceed flying alongside her companion.

"We're...almost there..." Wendy said.

"Well, I'm glad to hear that," panted Max, keeping stride well with the little Dragon Slayer and the Exceed. "This castle is huge!"

The blue-haired girl was anything but relieved. The fact that they were approaching the treasury was, perhaps, a good thing. However, the feeling she was getting was anything but good. "Blood...I can smell blood in that room..."

Wendy's statement caused a chill to spread throughout the group. Doranbolt's departure had already left them a man down, and the strange elf-woman had used even stranger magic. What could possibly be next? Plunging themselves into darkness, the group entered a narrow hallway. The sounds of battle filled their ears — sharper in poor Wendy's — and the smell of blood grew stronger. A source of light became visible near the end of the tunnel, the group pushing themselves harder to reach it...

...and the sight that reached their eyes was horrific. The bodies of the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadrons were strewn across the floor of the treasury, laying in a pool of their own blood. The red coloured liquid was splattered onto the arching double doors of the Mercurius Treasury Vault. Kneeling before the haughty, laughing form of a red-and-black clad woman, was Arcadios. He clung desperately to his sword, using it to hold his weight up. His armour, which must have been a brilliant white, was stained red with blood splatter, and his body was shaking.

"Is that...?" gasped Max.

"It's Arcadios!" Wendy finished, her eyes widening in horror.

"...The...Fairy Tail mages..." gasped Arcadios, his voice hoarse. A tired, exhausted eye peered at Wendy, Max, and Charle through the visor of his battered, stained helmet. "You've...made it..." A thin smile — one of satisfaction, of a soldier who had fulfilled his duty — slipped across Arcadios' face, the man slumping to the ground and losing consciousness. Blood pooled from out beneath him, adding to the red stains that painted the room.

"About time you crumpled," groaned Brutalia. "I have no patience for stubborn men." She raised her fan, preparing to use it for the finishing blow. A roaring, rushing wind filled her ears, catching Brutalia off-guard, her vision clouded by a burst of sand. Brutalia forced herself backwards, away from the typhoon of grit, her face worked in frustration. Runt was unable to stifle a snigger, which was mercifully drowned out by the sound of the sandstorm.

"What in the—!" Brutalia sounded furious, and truth be told, she _was_. Being denied a kill was one of the easiest ways to infuriate the woman, and when she was angry, her face revealed the true meaning of 'beauty is only skin deep'.

"Weren't you paying any attention?" chided Runt. "Eris sent us a message with her magic; she told us to watch out for the likes of blue haired Enchanter, a snow-white cat, and a beige-haired man with Sand Magic. You were too busy salivating over your next kill to pay her voice any mind."

True to Runt's words, the sandstorm vanished, revealing people who matched the description Eris had given them. Wendy was kneeling on the floor, cradling the bleeding form of Arcadios in her arms. Max stood protectively in front of her, sand swirling around them, heeding his beck and call. And Charle floated above all three of them, her white wings spread wide, almost angelic. Each and every Fairy Tail mage wore a look of utmost displeasure.

"So you must be the Mage group the King of Fiore recruited to protect his riches, aren't you?" asked Brutalia, snapping her fan shut. "Fairy Tail, wasn't it? We've heard of you."

"If you've heard of Fairy Tail, then you know we're the Number One Guild in Fiore," Max snapped harshly. It was a bluff on his part, as he knew damn well the mages who made Fairy Tail the Number One Guild were no longer with them. But he was praying that these two Mages weren't nearly as informed as the citizens of Crocus, and they could settle this with an intimidation play. "Give up now, and we can resolve this without it getting messy."

"Number One Guild?" repeated Runt. "No, that's not what she meant. You're the Guild that lost all of its best members in a tragic accident!" Clenching her fists, the flames reignited in a brilliant spark. "We might have been worried if someone like the Salamander or Titania had been sent! But small fry like you?!"

"We can take you easily," supplied Brutalia, for once on the same page as Runt.

Wendy faltered. Anyone and everyone seemed to know what had happened to her Guild, and was using it as a weapon. She could feel the emotions rising in her throat, threatening to spill out in spite of the danger. Wendy railed against it, desperately trying to ground herself in the here and now. _I can't...I can't bring myself to cry now...I'm the only one here that can save everyone...and Doranbolt...Doranbolt is coming back to me...If I cry now, I'm giving up right here...!  
_  
Wendy's thoughts drifting towards the elder female mage of Fairy Tail she'd come to consider an older sister. The crimson haired Queen of the Fairies who had pulled Wendy out of a pool of misery before. She tightened her grip on Arcadios, who began to glow with a soft green light; the sign of a Sky Dragon Slayer's healing magic. Wendy's brown eyes burned with a fire they had lacked since the events of Tenrō Island.

"I don't care how strong you are, or what you think you know about us!" cried the little Dragon Slayer. "Fairy Tail never backs down from a fight!"

Max grinned, his spirit reignited at Wendy's words. His bluff had failed, but Wendy wasn't giving up. "Well said!"

"So she knows how to talk big," said Brutalia, irritation, amusement, and indulgence working across her face in equal, terrifying measure. "I'll tell you what, then. The under-developed one over here doesn't even need to lift a muscle. I'll take you all on and break you down!" She pointed her fan at the three of them. "Just like I did these knights, I will crush you!"

Runt sighed. As eager as she was to let off some steam, she knew better than to interfere when Brutalia got like this. _It's best if I stay back...just keep a lookout, that's all... _Runt kept her eyes locked forward, observing everything, the flames fading from her hands.

"Max, Charle...I can't leave everyone like this..." Wendy said tentatively, already in the process of applying first-aid to Arcadios. "The Enchantments I bestowed upon Max should last a little longer...please, fend her off while I tend to everyone?" Wendy's eyes met Max and Charles, her expression saying everything. _I will not let anyone die again!_

"You've got it!" Max nodded, while Charle huffed, but assented with a curt nod. He could still feel the surging increase in power that Wendy's triple-layer Enchantment had given him. At the same time, however, the Enchantments were waning, Max could feel it. _I'm going to have the make the most out of the next few minutes...!  
_  
Clasping his hands together, Max generated a swirling sphere of sand between both palms. Larger portions of sand required more magical power than smaller versions, but Max felt like he could take on the world right now. "SAND BURST!" Thrusting his palms forward, Max released the sphere outwards with the force of a small rocket. Brutalia, with her fan, raised it high; the sand sphere exploded before it even reached her, as if touching an invisible wall. Max's narrow eyes narrowed further, surprised.

_Is it some sort of barrier?_ he mused, keeping his attention fully locked on the woman.

Flying at a high altitude, Charle kept her keen eyes locked on the battle below. She had no plan that worked with Max, and in her defence, she barely knew how the man fought. This wasn't the Strongest Team she'd become familiar with, so she couldn't simply rush in half-cocked. Circling high overhead, the Exceed waited on an opening.

"Sandstorm, hm?" Brutalia smirked. "I've seen this sort of magic before! I can overcome it without much work!" Her fan snapped shut, before reopening in a flurry. She thrust her fan in Max's direction; an invisible force impacted him with the weight of something he couldn't describe, a kind of pressure that came from more than simply air. Bracing himself, the thin man withstood the assault with considerable difficulty. _I owe you, Wendy!_ He thought, realising it was only her Enchantments that had allowed him to stand his ground. _But what was that?!_

_She's super strong..._

Wendy had already moved on from Arcadios to the other knights, applying the requisite first-aid to stabilise their conditions. _But that magic...it looks like wind pressure if you look at it...but I know it's not. I can't feel any actual vibrations in the air at all...it's something else entirely..._Weaving his hands at his sides, Max formed two separate whirling twisters, surrounding each palm with a gale of earthen wind. With both palms, even as he felt his Enchantments begin to fade still further — he had only moments to make this count — the beige-haired mage released a torrent of sand. It rushed along the ground, snaking its way towards Brutalia. Her fan moved in a sweeping motion, and along the arc it traveled, the Sand Rebellion followed, completely wrestled from Max's control.

"What the hell?!" Max swore, unable to help himself.

_She's got him now,_ thought Runt, smirking. _And here I was hoping I'd get a chance to do something._

Brutalia raised her fan above her head, and the stream of the Sand Rebellion followed her motions easily, rising high towards the ceiling. The elegant-looking woman brought her fan down, and the Sand Rebellion with it, delivering Max's magic right back towards him with all the ease of swatting a fly. Seeing these movements, it finally clicked in Wendy's brain.

"Max! I thought it was Air Magic, but it isn't!" she shouted. "It's...it's some sort of telekinesis!"

"She's right!" confirmed Charle, whose vantage point afforded her the best view. "Her movements were too swift and fluid for a user of any sort of Air Magic; it isn't like what I've seen from Wendy!"

"Telekinesis?!" Max was aghast, feeling the full brunt of his Sand Rebellion with his own body. The torrential sands pushed Max backwards, threatening to topple him over entirely. Wendy's Enchantments were gone; the euphoric feeling they'd given him had faded with his last attempt at the Sand Rebellion. It began to rip into his skin, tearing away at his clothes. _Damn it..._

_"_

Protection of the tallest Mountains...ARMOUR!"

His body was swathed in a soft glow, the familiar feeling of Wendy's Enchantments returning. His Sand Rebellion was causing far less pain, which Max took advantage of immediately to force it off, dispersing the flow of his Sand Rebellion with a churning sand tornado that spun in the opposite direction. The sand dispersed, stunning Brutalia who had been hoping to kill Max with his own technique.

Standing behind Max was Wendy, who emitted a soft green glow of her own. She quickly finished reciting the incantations for her other Enchantments, restoring Max's three-fold Enchantment, while applying it to herself as well. "I've finished the first-aid, Max! Everyone's condition is stabilised! I'm going to help you now!"

"Alright!" Max grinned, feeling reinvigorated, as if Wendy had cast her healing Magic on him. "With two against one, we can handle it!"

"If the Enchantress is stepping in, then I'm not going to wait around anymore!" said Runt, making a wide leap and landing next to Brutalia. "I don't care about your objections, Brutalia, I'm fightin' now too! Besides, if we take too long, the blue bird will be upset."

"Do as you wish, what the blue bird wants isn't my concern. All I'm concerned about" Brutalia's magical energies began to bleed out for the first time since the battle had begun, a lush, brilliant red, flame-like against her body. Her face, which had struggled with emotion during the past several minutes, broke into a malicious smile. "is seeing their blood on the outside of their mangled bodies!"

"Now..." came an eloquent voice that everyone in the room was at least acquainted with, interrupting the fighting stances that the group had taken. "That's far from polite, Brutalia, dear. We owe everything to our precious little blue bird." Out of the darkness of the hallway came the elven woman Runt had called 'Eris'; her body had been healed of whatever damage she had sustained in her battle with Max, Charle, and Wendy, and she flashed Brutalia the look of a patient, patronising matron. "You would do well to be polite, even when he isn't within earshot."

"How is she up and about...?" Max was flabbergasted. "I know I hit her with a point-blank Sand Rebellion!"

"You'll find that my people are a bit sturdier than humans," replied Eris simply. "As loathe as I am to continue with violence, our blue bird's orders are absolute." A halo of purple light formed behind Eris; with the clapping of her palms together, the Brutalia and Runt were bathed in the glow of Eris' ring of light. The light created a gentle gust, ruffling their clothing and hair, but otherwise was no indicator of an effect.

"Oh I haven't felt _this_ in awhile!" grinned Runt, flexing her fingers; she felt as if she could grind steel to dust.

"I think you'll find that we also have an Enchanter, little girl," Brutalia boasted, enjoying with the surge of power that accompanied the light from Eris' halo. "Now, this has officially gone on too long! Let's finish it!"

A gentle flow of air distracted Brutalia, Runt, and Eris in the middle of the woman's boasting. The air, which should have been invisible, was given a purple hue; this stream of purple flowed in a singular direction — towards the small Fairy Tail Mage. Opening her mouth, Wendy devoured the air and with it, the purple light that accompanied it. Scooping even more air into her mouth with her hands, Wendy tried to eat as delicately as a lady should, but was surprised by how delicious the air tasted — even moreso than normal — and ate ravenously.

"She's..." Runt watched Wendy, mouth agape.

"The little girl can't be—" Brutalia sounded indignant, as if the very thought that crossed her mind was one she'd rather shake off.

"And yet it would appear so," Dissatisfaction, well and true, crossed Eris' face for the first time since she'd gotten here. "The little one is a Dragon Slayer..." Eris' elf ears twitched nervously. _She seems to be eating the air...? No...that's not good! The air is brimming with power from my Light of Authority...! _The eleven woman immediately shut off the Light of Authority, and the air once again regained its normal colour and composition, but it was too late.

Wendy's magical aura began to flare, light green magical energy mixing with the shades of purple, darkening her aura to a deep emerald. "Thanks for the meal," Wendy said politely, rubbing the back of her hand alongside her chin. She was pleased to see that, if nothing else, their enemies looked absolutely taken aback. Not many people knew what to do when confronted with Dragon Slayer Magic, and she never always knew why; she, Natsu, and Gajeel were definitely a rare breed, but the fact that Dragon Slayer Magic always surprised an opponent came as an equal to surprise to Wendy. Yet that could be her advantage.

Reciting her incantations for a second time, Wendy covered herself, Max, and Charle in a doubled, triple-layer Enchantment, using the extra magical power she'd gained from eating the air blessed by the eleven woman's Enchantment. "Everyone! Let's try and do this quickly!"

"Of course!"

"You got it!"

Max and Charle cried in mutual agreement. Team Wendy officially was making their comeback.

Brutalia, all subtlety foregone, now that the trio had figured out the secret of her telekinetic magical abilities, snapped her fan downwards. A horrible _CRACK!_ followed her motion — she had wrestled a chunk of stone free from the flooring, breaking it off and holding it above her head with all the ease of lifting paper — bringing her fan slashing in the direction of Wendy and her friends. The gargantuan chunk of stone followed suit, barreling forth with the intent to smash them all.

"SAND WALL!" Max blurred ahead of his friends, spreading his arms wide. Sand erupted from the ground, thick and layered, rushing out in a defensive formation to protect himself and Wendy. The boulder crashed into it, slowing down before stopped dead in the tightly packed protective sand barrier. "SAND WRAPPINGS!" Weaving his arms through the air, the Sand Wall encased the boulder completely, crushing it, grinding it, and assimilating it into Max's sand.

"DOUBLE LAYERED SAND REBELLION!" With the boosted sand acquired from both his magic and natural sand, Max transferred his protective barrier into an offensive deluge of sand. Brutalia braced herself for impact, caught off guard by Max's bold but successful counter of her own telekinetic assault.

"MAX SPEED!" Charle cried out, her body losing form with speed; a white streak launched itself from the ceiling towards Runt, who dodged it barely, flipping through the air away from a strike which had come from an angle she shouldn't have properly seen. Charle pulled out of the dive without crashing into the ground, only to see Runt running headlong towards her; the diminutive woman made a wide leap, and her foot struck Charle in the torso.

Air burst from Charle's lungs, she felt the blinding snap of several ribs, the pressure of flying backwards, and her consciousness went black.

"CHARLE!" Wendy's yell was throat-shredding. Leaping into the air with her arms extended, she caught the flying form of her friend, buckling from the pressure. Tucking and rolling as she hit the ground, Wendy cradled the limp body of Charle in her arms. The Exceed was barely breathing, and she wasn't moving at all. "Charle...! Just...just hang in there...!" Immediately, Wendy began to apply the Healing of her Sky Dragon Slayer Magic to Charle's motionless form.

"S-Shit!" Max hissed, realising that Charle's life was in grave danger and he was stuck fending off three opponents who were more than strong enough to manhandle him. He'd already been wounded, and while Wendy's Enchantments had boosted his defences and physical abilities, she hadn't had the time to heal him yet. "SAND—"

"I've had enough!" Runt crowed, her hands igniting in a rush of fire. She ran quickly along the ground, and extended a hand in a forward swipe. Max backstepped, avoiding the flames...only for his shirt to rip open and blood to splatter across the stone floor. It was a shallow cut, but a cut nevertheless. _She cut me...with flames!? What kind of magic is she using?! _Max kept moving backwards, evading, and as he did, Runt pursued, her flaming hands cutting through the air, leaving a trail of embers. Each strike left a cut on Max's body the man couldn't explain; yet barely any heat. _I...can't focus...with this little girl...pressing me like this...!_

"We've got our chance," Eris placed a hand on Brutalia's shoulder. "The Dragon Slayer is incapacitated. Runt has the Sand Mage under her thumb. We should turn our attention towards the Vault."

Brutalia stared at Eris, chewing on a response that would have done far more than border on rudeness. She held her tongue, snapping her fan shut, jabbing it in the direction of the Vault. "Fine. Let's get out of here, so I can take a bath."

Both of the women moved at the same time; a halo of yellow light shone behind Eris, while Brutalia simply maintained her stance. With the clap of her hands, the halo of yellow light flared, releasing a thin, but powerful laser of concentrated light from Eris' palms. Simultaneously, Brutalia let loose a mental blast of invisible force; both of these attacks ripped past Wendy, shaking her to the core but solidly missing her, and collided with the massive, double doors of the Vault. An almost electronic sound accompanied the release of the combined attack, yet it was completely drowned out by the explosion of the collision with the Vault's doors.

The force of the detonation sent bodies flying everywhere — unconscious Knights, Arcadios, and even Wendy herself, still clutching Charle — smoke and debris went flying high to the ceiling. Runt and Max's separate battle was disrupted, the ground shaking beneath them, throwing them both off-balance. Brutalia and Eris waited with baited breath for the kicked-up dust to clear, expecting to see the Vault doors blown wide open. It was to their disbelief when the door was revealed, still standing, only dented by the force of their combined assault.

"All of that power...and the door didn't budge!" Max gasped, taking his attention away from Runt, who too looked incredulously at the double-doors of the Treasury Vault.

"It must be made of something other than steel or iron," Eris mused. "Our strength should be more than enough for metals like those."

"Then we'll just give it another go!" replied Brutalia. "Keep striking where we made that dent and we'll blow it wide open!"

"No..."

Brutalia and Eris' second attempt was halted by a small voice. Their attention turned to Wendy, who was beginning to stand up. Her legs trembled, and she still clutched Charle within her hands. Visions were flashing within her mind; Acnologia, Tenrō Island, the faces of her friends, wiped out in an explosion. The vision shifted; the faces of Doranbolt, Charle, and Max, her friends who were in immediate danger. Arcadios and his Knights, who needed more than her first-aid if they were going to make it out of here alive.

"Max! Please get behind me!"

The beige haired man wasted no time in following her instructions, dashing away from Runt and towards Wendy, standing firmly behind her as instructed.

Wendy inhaled deeply, pulling additional amounts of air, and the ambient Eternano Eris and Brutalia's combined attack had sent flying. Her cheeks bulged, storing the wind and eternano within her mouth.

"ROAR OF THE SKY DRAGON!"

Expelled from Wendy's fanged mouth was a swirling vortex of air, picking up more than enough debris to be visible to the naked eye. The hurricane-like vortex ripped into the ground, baring down on Eris and Brutalia with unprecedented force. The width of the spell was enormous, sweeping Runt, Eris, and Brutalia up within its shredding winds, and carrying them far across the Treasury room, crashing into a wall at the furthest end. Wendy's Roar drilled and bored into the wall, forcing it to crack and give away beneath its strength before her wind dissipated. The little Dragon Slayer slumped to her knees, exhausted.

"Wendy, are you alright?" Max knelt down beside the worn-out girl, concern etched into every crevice of his face.

The girl shook her head slowly. "We're in trouble..." She could smell it. They were about to deal with new arrivals in only moments, and one of them smelled familiar in a way she couldn't quite place.

"When Eris sent out that distress call, I didn't think she was actually dealing with something too serious," Wendy heard the voice before she saw its owner. The individual walked out of the darkened hallway, followed at arm's length by another person. Both were...odd, though the situation at hand was hardly the time to appreciate such things. The first person was a younger individual, with an androgynous, beautiful face and a body curved in a way that would make Runt envious. They wore a sleeveless, skintight outfit which hugged their body, and was covered front to back with a long, flowing cloth. Their footsteps were accompanied by the click of the heels they wore, and adorning their sapphire-coloured hair was a stereotypical witch's hat. Their gloved hands clutched at a staff, ornately crafting, appearing more like ice than metal or wood.

"It does appear that they've given Eris, Runt, and Brutalia a run for their money," spoke the other. This one was clearly a woman, stunningly beautiful, putting even Eris' elven looks to shame. Her body was mature, voluptuous, and each step caused her considerable endowments to move. She wore only a purple string bikini, in addition to a white cloth which was draped from her shoulders to her hips, yet still managed to cover little. She ran one hand through her blonde hair, which was tied into a ponytail, while her other hand clutched a staff of her own.

The blue-hued individual placed their free hand coyly on their hips and smirked. "It's you, isn't it? The Enchantress with the small body and blue hair?"

Wendy swallowed, the hairs on her neck standing on end. Their magical aura, even at this stage, was making it hard for her to take in what little air she hadn't used for her previous spell. After the pregnant pause became almost unbearable she nodded, clutching Charle tightly to her chest while Max looked on apprehensively behind her.

"I see you're at the end of your rope, little Enchanter," The blue haired figure spoke, a smile curling at the lips and a free hand pulling at the lip of the hat's brim. A blue stare locked onto Wendy's brown orbs, the voice bringing a pit that deepens into her stomach. "I'm the Generous Robin. A pleasure to meet you, survivor of Fairy Tail, Wendy Marvell."

* * *

A/N:  
**Demod20:** _Awww yeah, the action is on and the censors aren't here. Grim and grisly atmosphere are things I excel at so I'm very pleased with the result of my efforts. From Handsome's brutality to Brutalia's ruthlessness, I like it when villains have unabashed carnal evil on full display. Not to mention gives plenty of incentive for our heroes to jump into action! I had fun with the full cast and I am eager to see where my co-author and I take it from here._

**LastationLover5000: **_Whoo boy, this was quite a chapter to write. My counterpart's section really started us off good, with Doranbolt splitting off to fight Handsome, and Eris intercepting Wendy, Charle, and Max. But I feel like I got the harder part this time, with Wendy, Max, and Charle having to fend off Brutalia, Runt, and later Eris as well. Mercifully, Wendy isn't a weakling, she just lacks the finesse everyone else does. Hopefully, you all enjoyed this chapter, especially with our new arrivals at the very end! We'll see you all soon!_


	6. The Generous Robin

**Chapter 6 - The Generous Robin  
Written By Demod20 and LastationLover5000**

* * *

_The Generous Robin._

At one point, a legend of Ishgar as old as tales of dragons. Now, one adorned in the stylish telltale markings of the blue bird and calling oneself the clandestine leader of these magic wielding brigands has revealed themself. Radiating a passive Aura that made the ones she dealt with before seem paltry in comparison, the Hoodlum leader had beautiful features with a cherub face sculpted to look solid yet soft.

Blue eyes shined a teasing gleam at her, long locks of teal hair languidly lying over bare shoulders and down the back. Grey gloves covered slender arms up to the elbows, matching the heeled boots sleeved up to the knees. A velvet smooth cloth covered the curved slight upper body down between a pair of sleek black stockings that hugged the curves of the thighs like a second skin. With a teal colored witch hat resting on their crown and a serene shaped stave that looked more ice than solid wood or metal, lied in a casual right hand while the left tugged at the front rim of the hat.

_This scent is familiar...but I swear I've never met this person before…_ Wendy thought, her eyes wide with uncertainty while her exhausted self was almost crumpled on the floor. _But if that is the Generous Robin...then we really are in trouble…_

Charle was still unconscious, curled into a fetal position as Wendy kept her small soft body close to her own. She could hear the pain as audibly as she could smell the blood coming from Max as he took labored breaths behind her. And with no sight of Doranbolt, they were truly out of sorts.

"What? Nothing to say?" The leader or the Hoodlums inquired with a raised brow. "Are you stunned or too bent out of shape for witty rapport?"

"Hold a s-sec!" Max suddenly blurted out. Raising a shaking hand to point at the bandit leader, he inquired with a believable sense of incredulity. "You _are_ the Generous Robin?!"

"Yeah…?" The witch hatted individual replied with confusion.

"B-But...isn't the Hoodlum leader...a guy?" The beige haired mage inquired with a squinting glare.

_Snort!_

The sound came abruptly as the cherub faced figure of androgynous beauty began to let out a loud series of giggles. They were melodic, bringing a owlish pair of blinks from the Sandstorm Mage and his Slayer companion.

Wiping the tears from their eyes, the figure placed a hand on their hip and bent forward with a sassy smile playing on their lips.

"That's because I am a guy, dumbass," He giggled aloud.

Wendy's vision swam while Max's balance was undone. She had never guessed such a slender curved beauty would ever be a boy! And as she began to contemplate the lack of womanly assets to compete with even this brigand, Max fell to his hands and knees.

"We're out energy, our smartest ally is a cat who is out of the fight and our greatest foe is a Crossdressing weirdo," Max thought aloud, tearing up as he looked up mournfully at the ceiling. "Yep. This is what rock bottom feels like…"

"Like your sense of fashion means much, bowlcut," Robin snorted with a roll of his eyes, standing upright while twirling his icicle shaped stave. "Not that it matters. Stay down if you don't want to feel a world of pain. I'm going to finish what my girls started."

"W-Wait!" Wendy stammered aloud, bringing the heeled bandit to halt his movement. Seeing that she got his attention, she clutched Charle like a security blanket and mustered her resolve. Staring ahead defiantly she spoke as evenly as she could while being so low on stamina. "What you're doing is wrong. If you go ahead and do this, the whole kingdom will suffer. If you truly believe you're out to do the right thing, then stop now while you can-"

"Oh that is rich!" Robin exclaimed, swinging his stave around while placing a hand on his stocking worn hip. "Let me explain this so I don't have to repeat myself. You mages are just as guilty of disenfranchising the common folk as the monarchs are."

"H-Hey that isn't true!" Max pushed himself up wearily to his feet. Wincing past his bloodied injuries he rebutted with hands gesturing for emphasis. "Our guild has helped more people than you could keep count of! We even saved this nation from devastation multiple times singlehandedly!"

"Results are never so black and white," Robin persisted, glaring icily at Max. "For example, I recall an entire town was razed to the ground because a certain Salamander was running rampant in a port town due to a charlatan masquerading as him. Do you know who had to pay for the damages? Not Fairy Tail, but the kingdom; and where does the coin come in to pay on behalf of the kingdom?"

"So you think stealing our country's wealth will make it better?" Wendy asked incredulously.

"As someone part of the problem for common folk, I don't see how you could understand, let alone empathize with the plight of people you consider beneath you," The Hoodlum leader sneered stoically. "Every kingdom I go, you people are treated like you're the vaunted rulers of the land. How much collateral do you leave behind, damaged and in pieces for ordinary people to clean up? Has your guild, the most notoriously destructive force in this country, ever once feel sorry for the craters you leave in towns, the earth you leave scorched or the people's homes you decimate?"

"I-It happens, though…" Max lamely replied, looking a bit more sullen as he grasped where the bandit's anger stemmed from. "We fight bad guys, and sometimes things break."

"I'm sure that is a worthy explanation for the people you've made homeless or lives you ruined through your entitled rampages," The Generous Robin snarled with a dismissive swing of his unarmed, gloved hand. "Congratulations for feeling bad way too late."

The temperature in the air suddenly chilled. As the two took in strained breaths, they'd watch vapor turn into clouds out of their mouths. Eyes of the two of the three conscious Fairy Tail mages looked on in horror turned awe as a massive diamond shaped construct of ice formed near the ceiling down from the jewel etched stave Robin held with one hand. Easily scaling to the size of an automobile, he'd gesture with his wand forward while armed with a smirk on his face.

"I on the other hand..." He spoke softly, beckoning the crystalline form of ice to spin in the air like a drill before shrieking straight into the vault's door; piercing it with a horrid tear of metal and mineral lined bulwark. "...want to relieve the suffering your people have long been overdue."

"The door-!" Max hollered with a strangled cry, his arms raised in reflex from the blast wave.

_The others only dented it,_ Wendy thought, her face paling at the sight of the ice oozing vapor from within the now visible vault. _And he broke it down in one move!_

"The Vault wasn't as tough as I thought," The buxom companion of Robin's spoke, her voice a dry lull as she placed a hand on her silky blonde head to give it an idle scratch. "Nice work, though, I suppose."

"I get the sentiment, Bobbie Blondes, I do but can you *try* to sound impressed?" The Hoodlum Mage inquired with incredulity.

"It's just, after the last few countries, this operation just seems a little too easy for all of its luster we've heard of their riches and guards. I haven't even needed to raise a finger so far," Bobbie sighed, her face forming a slight pout. "What a waste of time."

"Come now, Bobbie," The teal haired boy said, grasping the brim of his hat and twirled around to face it towards the outline of piles upon piles of gems, gold, and other kinds of riches lying within. Aiming the seat of his hat at the glimmering wealth he then spoke aloud with a sly grin on his face. "I'm sure the kingdoms will take us seriously after this."

All at once, a howling whirlwind was unleashed from a seemingly bottomless abyss. His tunic flapped about his legs, long hair swirled around his scalp like a flag while the space behind him was untouched. And before the eyes of Max and Wendy, a glittering storm of riches was siphoned into the hat as if it was without capacity.

"His hat is-"

"-sucking up all of Fiore's money!" Max finished for his smaller companion, the pair left awestruck at the bizarre act taking place before their eyes.

"Be grateful you're allowed to see this," The Generous Robin intoned icily with an even colder smile poised at the two. "This is what magic can do in the hands of a true hero; one doing this out of compassion for the common man and not for selfish gain or clout."

Wendy's eyes hardened at his words. He was so self righteous, but he had no clue what he was actually doing. If he took away the kingdom's riches, then Fairy Tail was finished!

She tried to push herself up but found her legs were weak and unable to sustain her own spritely weight. Gritting her teeth, eyes winced closed and she felt a gnawing in her gut. How was she going to stop them if she didn't even have the power to lift a hand to stop them?!

"Uuuuuugh," A voice suddenly jerked her attention away from the super suction. Amidst the pile of inert bodies, within the collapsed wall of the treasury room, a small woman pushed herself up to her feet. Wobbling back and forth, Wendy gawked as Runt stood up, bruised and bleeding but looking far from as damaged as the other two were.

"Oh, you're up," Bobbie piped up, turning her head to glance over her shoulder at the rusty blonde shorter mage limping over with a hand nursing a debris encrusted head. "Welcome back."

"My head feels like a hammer tried to split it open...where is that girl?!" Runt snarled out, trying to focus her bleary vision. When she saw the back of her superior, making her step back with a startled expression. "B-Boss!"

"Kind of busy at the moment, love," Robin replied, turning to look over his shoulder at the dirtied shorter woman. "Since you don't look worse for wear, why not be a dear and carry those two? I'm afraid we can't depend on Eris for ease of transportation this time around."

"F-For real?!" Runt cried with outrage. "Do you not see my vision is spinning right now?!"

"Are you saying you can't do it-?"

"Yes...no...Dammit!" Runt swore, limping back to the other mortar plastered pair of women, gesturing back angrily at her leader. "You owe me something strong for this favor!"

"Rightly so, love," Robin replied with a close of his eyes, turning to look back at the streaming contents of the vault.

"Damn Brutalia...you should...lay off...the fatty foods!" Runt wheezed, straining the posh dressed woman over one shoulder. Grasping Eris underarm, she was relieved that the elven woman felt like a pillow of weight in comparisons.

"Got'em both. You almost do-"

Time froze for Runt. One instant she saw nothing but the fluttering of the Generous Robin's luscious teal colored locks. The next she bore witness to a reddish-orange striped blur of an outline, swinging a fist straight towards the Hoodlum's leader.

"ROBIN!"

Runt's cry came a second too late, but her voice stopping mid-sentence was all the warning he needed. Robin's eyes dilated to pins, bending his head back, and twirling on the backs of his heels. A subsequent series of shimmers followed, sparks flying as Robin disengaged his hat's suction and placed it on his head, twirling his stave around to discharge a storm of icicles at the silhouette.

"You move quite well in heels." A voice sounded behind the effeminate boy, his eyes registering the impact of his ice magic impaling the far wall of the treasury. Looking slowly over his shoulder, he'd see a scarred man, wearing a flared collar attached jacket with sleeves torn off and covered in blood. With sharp dark eyes glaring ahead, the man held a dangerous countenance despite his injured condition; one that made the Generous Robin stand alert before him.

"D-Doranbolt!" Wendy cried out with relief.

"Boy, are we glad to see you," Max admitted with a weary, wincing grin.

"Sorry it took me so long," He confessed, and smiled gingerly at Wendy, placing a hand on her head with a comforting pat. "I gave you my word, though. I intend to honor what I say."

She couldn't even say "Thanks". The cobalt haired girl began to choke out sobs, eyes overflowing with salty water, as the uncertainty and powerlessness she felt was washed away by his mere arrival. As she tried to rein in her emotions, the sound of the blonde woman's breasts jiggling reminded them that they weren't alone and the moment of respite was spent.

"Where did he come from?" Bobbie inquired, her voice tinged with intrigue and no longer disinterested like before. "He has a different look to him compared to the other two."

"I saw him with the other two earlier in town," Runt announced, her eyes fixed on the man with alarm with how quickly he moved. "I didn't think he was a Fairy Tail Mage too."

"You must be the other Robin's Hoodlums," Doranbolt intoned, his eyes steeling in its glare at the three; gazing at Robin himself, he choked back a short at his choice outfit and maintained a stoic demeanor. "Are you *the* Generous Robin?"

"In the flesh," He replied, a grin forming on his cherub face. "You're quite nimble for a less than buff guy. I'd rate you a six out of ten by my tastes; nice Teleportation Magic too."

"Six out of ten…?" Doranbolt repeated blinked owlishly.

"Just out of curiosity," The Generous Robin inquired, his blue gems for eyes sparkled with intrigue. "Who were you fighting earlier, to get those kinds of wounds?"

"Handsome, actually," Doranbolt casually replied, a smile playing at his own face. "He was a tough one, but I managed to...dispose of him."

Bobbie's and Robyn's eyes widened at the implication. Handsome was a powerful mage and physically near indestructible. To have someone defeat him in single combat was unthinkable. And given the circumstances, they had no way of finding out for themselves what befell their comrade.

"I see," Robin replied with a more cagey expression. "And now that he's out of the way, you want to take care of us too?"

"It may come to that," Doranbolt stated with a grim smile. "However, even if I fail, you have bigger concerns than us. I just got in touch with the Magic Council…they're going to intervene in this matter, personally."

At that, the air became pregnant with silence. Even the Hoodlums' leader became disturbingly quiet. It was odd how, until now, they hadn't attracted that kind of attention despite then affecting multiple nations' worth of treasury. And now their bold attack on Mercurius Castle was the last straw would be the final straw...if he was truthful.

"Say I believe you," Robin inquired with a level stare challenging Doranbolt's. "You expect us to stop part way to completing? You're willing to sacrifice yourself to another unfeeling bureaucracy of cold authority?"

"Say what you will about what you believe. I promise you this," Doranbolt snarled, raising his bloodied arms up in a threatening posture while shouting aloud. "My body is a weapon and shield. I will gladly use it in exchange to stop your heinous plans! So if you continue, be prepared to fight to the bitter end; and make sure you will have no regrets before I end you!"

It was enough of a declaration that Bobbie's cool countenance became incensed. Veins throbbed along her head and the back of her hands as she grasped the pole handle of her staff. Her curves swayed as she walked forward, her body becoming alight in a shroud of pale magical energy as wide eyes glare at Doranbolt.

But, a gloved hand raised up, stifling her approach.

"We aren't in any shape to handle the Council's forces after fighting someone with such resolve like you," The Generous Robin admitted. "I'll withdraw from this, if only for my comrades' sakes. Consider this a one-time mercy from the Generous Robin and be thankful that I don't kill without reason."

"Be thankful I don't attack without reason either, Hoodlums," Doranbolt replied with an even glare. "Less I scatter you all to the four winds of Fiore and beyond."

A musical laugh was all that he got in response to his comeback. Strutting out as stylishly as he entered, his buxom partner followed suite and Runt behind with her colleagues held under and over her arms. After seconds turned to minutes, Doranbolt could sense they had finally left the castle.

They were finally safe.

Doranbolt forced his body to stay upright until he was one-hundred percent sure that Robin and his Hoodlums were indeed gone. When he could no longer sense their magical energy, the young man felt his knees buckle, and he fell backwards into the embrace of a Wendy Marvell who caught him. She too, sunk to the ground, allowing Doranbolt to rest his head in her lap. The dimunitive Dragon Slayer, keeping a firm hand on her unconscious exceed partner, breathed a prolonged sigh of relief.

"We're...we're safe..." She exhaled, her body shaking even as she placed a small hand on Doranbolt's head. Wendy hadn't had time to truly take in just how battered Doranbolt was; as clever as his escape was, that Handsome had still done a number on him. But he was alive. "You kept your promise...Doranbolt...you came back to me..." The tears didn't flow nearly as freely this time, but Wendy's eyes began to water nevertheless.

Doranbolt smiled — an exhausted, weary smile, but a pleasant smile still — and raised a tired arm to Wendy's face, wiping the tears away. "I made you a promise, of course I kept it. I'm not leaving you."

Max, tired as he was, couldn't help but feel like he was intruding at the sick bed of someone else's family, and said nothing for a long time. He was pleased, however, that they'd made it out of this alive...even if their mission had been unsuccessful. "We...we were completely outmatched..." He hung his head in shame, his sandy-hair drooping and obscuring his face. "All of them use such strange magic..." His mind drifted to Runt. If this hadn't been a life and death situation, he'd have been forced to admit she was very cute, if a bit small. But her magic stumped him the most. His hand rested on the cuts and abrasions his body carried from her. "Fire that cuts the body...if only Natsu were here..."

A slight tension rose in the group at the mention of Natsu's name. Eyes briefly fell on Wendy, but she wasn't crying anymore. Perhaps she'd shed all her tears for the day, or the perhaps Doranbolt's words had steeled her young heart. The little Dragon Slayer's face betrayed only the slightest flicker of emotion, but she nodded. "We...were beaten. But I don't think it's because we were weaker..." She truly didn't believe it was. She knew her friends were strong. But something about these opponents was strange.

"As much as I wanted to complete this mission for Fairy Tail, we won't have to deal with them at all if the Magic Council is coming to deal with it," Max suggested, still more crestfallen. Fairy Tail didn't get along well with the Council on principle — and this in part lent itself to his distrust of Doranbolt — and it was with grudging acceptance he realised he felt relieved they'd be getting some help.

"A-About that..." Doranbolt chuckled weakly. "I bluffed them out. I've retired from the Magic Council; I am a Fairy Tail Mage now. I have no more authority than you do to bring the Council here."

"You're kidding," Max's mouth with wide, and then he grinned in spite of himself. "Your bluff worked better than mine, then. Looks like we're still the only ones on hand for this."

"Honestly, we drew a bad lot," replied Doranbolt from Wendy's lap. "But...I'm familiar, at least roughly, with the combat strengths of these Mages."

Max's eyes widened, and Wendy gasped. Both of them had their eyes firmly on the man, who was looking none too impressive with his damaged body and prone position on the lap of the young Dragon Slayer, yet he carried the information vitally necessary to completing their mission.

"Yeah, I—" Doranbolt's words were cut off by a splutter of blood and violent coughing. He spasmed viciously on Wendy's lap, spitting up blood again, before he lay still. Wendy felt her body slammed by a sudden chill; Doranbolt was not moving. On her lap and in her arm lay two wounded and unconscious comrades, Wendy only able to watch in horror. Doranbolt's name escaped her mouth in a hair-raising shriek.

* * *

**Mercurius, Hospital Wing**

Wendy stood at the side of a bed in the medical ward of the Mercurius Castle, her hands placed lightly over the diaphram of Doranbolt's torso. Teal magical energy spread out from her hands, enveloping the unconscious man as she tried to heal him. Shortly after Doranbolt had fallen unconscious, Arcadios had regained his — Wendy's first-aid, combined with the Jade Talisman that he wore underneath his armour — had caused him to recouperate at a rate quicker than his own Knights. Arcadios had gone to get help, and with the aid of the remaining Mercurius Guards, Doranbolt, Charle, and Arcadios' knights were escorted to the medical ward of the Castle.

The king's own Healers worked on the knights — Arcadios refusing all but bandaging — while Wendy slaved over the bodies of Charle and Doranbolt. Wendy was aghast; as she moved her glowing hands over the man's body, she could feel internal abrasions and bruises. Whatever he'd done to shake off his opponent, the man hadn't let Doranbolt go easily at all.

"Can you heal him?" Max inquired.

"I can..." replied Wendy slowly. "But...he pushed himself too hard...is it my fault? Is it because I asked him to come back to me? Max...did I do this?"

"Wendy, this isn't your fault!" Max told her firmly. "Doranbolt made his own decisions...and besides..." He scratched the back of his head, his voice betraying begrudging respect. "It's in a Fairy Tail wizard's nature to go over the top to protect their friends, right? Doranbolt...has the right spirit."

The blue-haired Dragon Slayer wasn't entirely convinced, yet she plowed on with the healing nevertheless. She didn't need to devour any extra air, as the air she'd consumed during her battle with the Robin Hoodlums still energised her, even if the girl's entire body felt limp. Doranbolt's external injuries began to stitch themselves, his internal wounds doing the same, even though Wendy couldn't see it. It wasn't an arduous process, as Wendy was an accomplished support player far before she took up combat, and moved onto Charle, tending to her broken ribs.

_Charle...and Doranbolt...my best friend and the man who saved me...I'm causing them all to suffer..._ Her thoughts dived deeper into negativity, the young girl unable to contain them. Charle's wounds repaired themselves, and Wendy slumped into a chair, her hair shrouding her face from view as she stared at the floor. She felt like she was cursed. All of her friends perished on Tenrō Island, and now, Doranbolt and Charle had nearly died because of her. Even Max had suffered wounds, though he was putting on a brave face to keep up Wendy's mood; she knew it, she wasn't a fool.

The idea that she was the cause of her friends' misfortune brought the beautiful boy — the Generous Robin — back to the forefront of her mind. Wendy hated to admit it, but it sounded like he was talking sense. Robin was the sort of fanatic who truly believed what he said, and, having the time to give it some thought, Wendy began to wonder if what he said had merit.

_"Every kingdom I go, you people are treated like you're the vaunted rulers of the land. How much collateral do you leave behind, damaged and in pieces for ordinary people to clean up?"_

_"You mages are just as guilty of disenfranchising the common folk as the monarchs are."_

Ever since Wendy had joined Fairy Tail, she couldn't remember anything she'd wanted more than to be an active part of the guild. To actively enrich her friends lives, and protect them as a mage of Fairy Tail. Cait Sith had been her home, ever since Jellal had brought her there. But in the end, it was an illusion; a comforting illusion, but none of it had been truly real. Fairy Tail was her first real family...but Robin's words turned everything upsidedown in her head. She knew that Natsu, Gray, and even Erza had possessed a...tendency...for the dramatic, and certainly did cause collateral damage. But they'd had to have been more helpful than hurtful in the long run, right?

_"Do you know who had to pay for the damages? Not Fairy Tail, but the kingdom; and where does the coin come in to pay on behalf of the kingdom?"_

Wendy shook her head. She wasn't so sure anymore.

"What would you do here...Natsu?" Wendy muttered to herself. She tried to imagine the Dragon Slayer she'd come to view as an elder brother figure. Focusing intently, Natsu's strong voice rang clearly in Wendy's mind, so clearly it almost felt as if he was speaking to her.

_"Don't screw with us! You're just justifying your own greed by making us look bad so you can feel like heroes. But a thief is always a thief, no matter how generous you think you are!_"

It was the sort of thing Natsu would say exactly. He wouldn't mince words, and he wouldn't let this Robin push Fairy Tail around.

_That's right...this isn't just about me...Fairy Tail is counting on all of us!_

"Urk..."

Max and Wendy heard the groaning from the nearest bed, immediately turning their attention to a stirring Doranbolt. The former Magic Council member weakly turned a head to look at Wendy, who was hovering worriedly over his bedside. "Sorry...did I make you worry...?"

Wendy nodded mutely, unable to find the proper words, this having been the second time in the same day she'd feared for Doranbolt's safety.

"I went a bit overboard..." Doranbolt explained. "My opponent, Handsome...he's something else. I didn't actually defeat him...I was only able to teleport him to the surrounding mountains, and altered his memory by a full twenty-four hours, making him forget why he was even here."

Wendy and Max stood, mouths agape, at this news. Doranbolt — who was certainly the most skilled of their group, even if he wasn't the strongest — had been unable to defeat his opponent, and resorted to making him exit stage left. The fact that they were dealing with extremely unorthodox opponents was beginning to dawn on them. Wendy frowned deeply, placing a finger to her chin. "They're not as strong as Grimoire Heart's members...and Master Hades was certainly a bigger threat...but we're being caught on the wrong foot. We just don't know enough..."

"Doranbolt, didn't you say you had some info on these guys?" inquired Max, his tone. "If...if you're one of us, please, tell us everything you know. For your comrades."

_For your comrades..._ Doranbolt needed no reaffirming of where he stood. He could feel the Fairy Tail branding on his shoulder — the symbol that he was one of their own — and Wendy's doleful eyes simply spurred him to speak. "You both know I was a member of the Magic Council. The Robin Hoodlums are a notorious band of criminals who reach far out beyond the realm of Fiore. We were planning on dealing with them only recently...but the events of the Tower of Heaven, Siegrain — no, Jellal — and Ultear's attempted coup set that operation back quite a ways."

Wendy hadn't been in Fairy Tail during the incident with Jellal, but she did know what talk around the guild that his work had drastically affected the Council. It had shifted the staff and their priorities entirely, though they did eventually reform and continued to be the sort of overbearing presence that only the Magic Council could.

Doranbolt forced himself to sit upright, grunting all the while, waving off a concerned Wendy. "I'm living proof that simply knowing how to fight these opponents is no guarantee we're going to succeed. The Robin Hoodlums all use unorthodox Magic, and their teamwork is exemplary. They're responsible for multiple successful heists, and have destablised the economies of multiple countries."

Hearing this, Wendy and Max nodded. It was clear to them now that Hisui's explanation earlier that morning had only been needed for them; Doranbolt was intimately familiar with the group, if only by reputation and official documentation. Hearing Hisui's account had merely confirmed governmental records to the former Magic Council member.

"The Magic Council," Doranbolt continued holding up one finger, "ranks perceived threats and criminals with a lettering system, directly correspondent to the the threat they pose to magical society as a whole. The bounty the on their head also raises in correspondence to this rank. The lowest ranked fall under the classification of 'D'; these would be petty, independent Dark Mages who use their abilities for small crimes." Doranbolt raised a second finger. "The second lowest ranking is the 'C' ranking; individuals in lower-tier Dark Guilds would typically fall under this rank, and have branched out to more severe crimes." A third finger. "'B' rank individuals have numerous crimes attributed to their name, wield powerful magic, would be the threats that the Magic Council's Rune Knights are at least considered for dealing with." A fourth finger. "'A' Rank criminals are among the most dangerous; members of the Balam Alliance are typically blanketed under this ranking, and they command arcane magics, and possess very high bounties." A fifth finger.

"T-There's another ranking above 'A'?" Max asked hoarsely. He was unfamiliar with the bounty and ranking system on principle; Mages did not take jobs directly from the Council, while they did answer to them. Doranbolt was divulging information that would typically be used by the Rune Knights or black market bounty hunters.

"'S' rank criminals are the highest ranking we have," Doranbolt explained grimly. "This ranking encompasses Mages who do not fit the 'A' rank classification, due to their potential to destablise magical society as a whole. The members of the Grimoire Heart Guild, for example, consisted of a multitude of 'A' rank threats; only Ultear and Hades himself were truly considered 'S' rank criminals. The 'Generous Robin' has gathered under his banner criminals who are all 'B' rank or higher. That is the kind of organisation we're dealing with."

Max found himself at a loss.

"But...the guys from the Balam Alliance, like those Grimoire Heart guys, were like way stronger, right? These people are tough, but we managed to defeat a few of them when push came to shove."

"I think you're misunderstanding why the Council gives out these particular ranks," Doranbolt chided his beige haired companion, shaking his head as he gestured with his hands for emphasis. "We —they — are a justice system, meant to govern the law of magic across the whole continent of Ishgar. They establish ranks as the crimes pile up, and their notoriety increases. Just because a Dark Mage is currently D Rank doesn't mean they are weak; it just means that's the level of crime and perceived threat they are at the moment. Its why we had previously prioritized the Hoodlums so low; before, they had never directly targeted the monarchies of various nations so openly, nor robbed so much in single operations."

"So...because this _Generous Robin_ has robbed so many countries," Max began to put together, his face beginning to construe into something akin to deep thought. "Means he's capable of causing just as much damage to magical society as the big-timers from the Balam Alliance?"

"Precisely," Doranbolt acknowledged. "Every single member of the Kin Purgatory was considered to be an A rank threat by relation to a known menace like Master Hades and Ultear, a former Councilor and known terrorist. If we had compiled more data and understanding of their true crimes or intentions, they may have ranked much higher as threats and bounties would have been immense in worth."

"...Was Jellal an S rank?" The words left Wendy's throat before she'd registered asking them. Concern for Jellal — even if this world's Jellal wasn't the Jellal who had saved her — came to her naturally, and with this new knowledge of a ranking system for criminals, she needed to know.

"Jellal's actions — infiltrating the Council, masquerading as a member of the Magic Council, interfering with official Magic Council business, enslavement of fellow humans, and intention to commit terrorism — all branded him as an S rank threat, yes," Doranbolt replied.

Wendy nodded. She figured that much. "But what about the Robin Hoodlums? You said that every one of them was 'B' class or above?"

Doranbolt rubbed the back of his head. "This...this is going to be a very long list, so let me see where to even begin." His wounds, singing out in pain, steered Doranbolt through to the waters of conversation to his first bullet point. "My opponent, codenamed 'Handsome'. His real name is Harris Jahsome, a former member of the 'Fair-Day Guild'. He sank into depravity of his own accord, and is wanted for multiple accounts of sexual assault, harassment, as well as multiple counts of manslaughter, and destruction of private property. His most notable crime, however, was the assault and later grevious wounds inflicted on his local village lord's daughter. Harris has a bounty of 7 Million Jewels, and is classified as a 'B-rank' threat."

"He's...horrible..." Wendy said lamely, unable to find the words to describe Handsome properly.

Max shuddered. "And what about his abilities? Are we going to go in blind again?"

Shaking his head, Doranbolt continued, "No. Fighting him firsthand confirmed it even without the reports. Harris uses a rare form of Take-Over; Take-Over: Inanimate Soul."

_Inanimate Soul? _The name itself was a contradiction. The term 'inanimate' meant that something was not alive, and if it wasn't alive, how it could have a soul? Max voiced his question before Wendy could, evidently as confused as she was.

"Doranbolt, Take-Over requires the user to absorb something with a 'soul', doesn't it? Demons, Beasts, Animals, or something else?"

"You're thinking too small," Doranbolt replied. "I'm not pretending to be an expert, but according to the archives of the Council, _everything_ in the world has a soul. While the amount of soul within an inanimate object is considerably smaller than souls found in truly living creatures, you'll find that even something like glass, boulders, and chairs have souls. Harris is able to Take-Over the soul of inanimate objects, and acquire their traits and abilities; he is a walking arsenal, a human officer's knife."

"A man of a thousand weapons..." Max's voice came out tired. "And that's just the first one..."

"The young woman, 'Runt', is one of the harder ones to pinpoint," Doranbolt said grimly. "Despite being very small for an adult woman, she is a capable fighter, physically competent and uses strange magic that we've still yet to pinpoint; flames are a common Magic she uses, but her fighting style is unorthodox, as you can see. Her bounty of 5 million Jewels was accrued entirely after joining up with the Robin Hoodlums, and she is considered a 'B-rank' threat."

"W-Wait, you don't know anything about her beyond guesses?" Max asked incredulously. She was the one he had been most curious about, the girl with the cutting flames.

"I'm sorry," the former Council Member apologised. "She's the strangest of them all, despite not even having the highest bounty or being regarded as the biggest threat. She's reputed for being able to respond to attacks she couldn't have possibly seen, and move in ways that defy conventional human movements; eyewitness accounts have described her jumping vertically while running up a horizontal surface, deflecting attacks from outside her peripheral vision, among other impossible feats.

"Jennifer Baleus, codenamed 'Brutalia', was originally a member of the Watchful Seer Guild in Bosco. She earned her infamy through the mass murder of several hundred hypnotised civilians simply to undermine the hypnotist who was controlling them. Jennifer is the daughter of a noble family who also hails from Bosco; her family has been pleading, futilely, for the young woman to return home. Her bounty is 10 million Jewels, and she is classified as an 'A-rank' threat."

"And she uses telekinesis," supplied Wendy, trying her hardest not to flinch at the fact that they were going up against an organisation with at least two people who saw murder as a means to an end.

"She is a very skilled user of Telekinetic Magic," nodded Doranbolt. "It is her only known magical skill, but she is able to use it for defence, attack, and supplementary purposes.

"Eris Vythis, who freely uses her real name, is a non-human member of the Robin Hoodlums. She is an Elf from the seven-allied nation state of Seven, and has a reputation as an outspoken detractor to the worship of pagan deities — specifically deities that date back before the decline of the original gods and dragons. Eris is wanted for slaying multiple civilians she claimed to be cultists, and is currently on the run from her own people. Her bounty is 15 million Jewels, and she is classified as an 'A-rank' threat."

"So she actually wasn't human," noted Wendy. "But...she killed people because they were 'cultists'? There's something odd about that..." The young Dragon Slayer had felt like Eris would have been one of the _least_ likely to kill, at least among their opponents. Even when Eris had fought Wendy, Charle, and Max, her attacks had felt like they were meant to incapacitate, not kill.

"Do we know anything about her magic?" inquired Max.

"Yes, but what I can tell you won't help us," admitted Doranbolt. "Her magic is a very rare form of Light Magic, referred to as the Kaleidoscope. It gives her a wide array of abilities based on the 'colour' of the light in question. As for which colour corresponds to what ability, I couldn't tell you; users of the Kaleidoscope Magic are far and few between, and knowledge of it in the Council is limited."

"Bobbie Blondes, another member who uses her real name without much fear of the Council's eyes and ears. Little is known about her past, and she operates typically as a hired sword, and as such, she has chosen to work for Mercenary Guilds, until she was recruited by the Robin Hoodlums. Her Bounty is 11 Million Jewels, and she is also classified as an 'A-rank' threat. Allegedly, she uses some form of Requip, but the type isn't known, meaning it's most likely an obscure branch."

"Requip...just like Erza..." Wendy realised with a pang in her heart. Max and Doranbolt gave her a moment of silence, but Wendy motioned for Doranbolt to continue, and so he did.

"...Now for the most problematic of the lot. The _Generous Robin_. Their real name is unknown, and all those who do encounter the Generous Robin are unsure if they're even a male or a female. They're known to be idealistic, and impulsive, but their strength is real. They're the head of the Robin Hoodlums, responsible for leading their multiple other heists in countries besides this one. Their bounty is 100 million Jewels, and is classified as an 'S-rank' threat. We believe the Generous Robin's power stems from his staff, making the Ice-type Magic he uses a powerful sort of Holder Magic."

A prolonged silence followed Doranbolt's explanations. Wendy, Max, and Doranbolt shared glances that held the same meaning: this information, while useful and interesting, had only put them slightly above where they had been minutes before. The Robin Hoodlums were a carefully chosen selection of mages; the Generous Robin, much to Wendy's chagrin, had his comrades well-chosen. There had to be something else they could do to prepare for this.

"After listening to all of that, it certainly doesn't boost my confidence," Max confessed, defeated. "We barely made a good showing against them before, and now we're going to have to do it all over again."

"I...think we have a chance," said Wendy, her words taking both Max and Doranbolt aback. "When we fought them before...we were caught off-guard, right? So we should turn the tables. We're the ones ambushing them, we'll have the advantage this time. And after all, we don't need to beat them; we just need to get what they stole and I know how we can do it in a single move."

"You...know how?" the beige-haired sand Mage was unable to keep the tone of surprise out of his voice.

Wendy nodded, smiling widely, "He tipped his hand just a little, I think. I'll explain everything once we've worked out when we're going to make our move, but we _can_ do this, especially if we avoid direct combat."

"But how can we find them?" Doranbolt asked the obvious question. "Crocus is the capital city of Fiore; over one million people live here. Assuming for even a second that the Robin Hoodlums are _based here, _this won't be like searching for a needle in a haystack; this'll be searching for a very specific piece of hay in a haystack."

At this, Wendy smiled more broadly, and she pointed at her own face. "The Generous Robin...he has a very specific scent. I'm still not sure where I've picked it up before, but it stands out from regular humans." Her body trembled, a mixture of nerves, and even a little bit of excitement at the prospect of being able to complete their mission for Fairy Tail. "I think Natsu would say, at a time like this, 'Don't underestimate a dragon's nose'."

* * *

**A/N:  
Demod20: **_This was what you could call a Aftermath Chapter. While I got the privilege of showcasing the Antagonist's face and true nature - including that he is, in fact, a Trap - but also just how strong he is and why he's the leader of the Robin Hoodlums. And of course, this wouldn't be complete without a badass boast and rescue by Doranbolt, having guts enough to keep fighting even on the brink of collapsing and bluffing hard enough to make the enemy retreat. My co-author's section, while not action packed, has plenty of emotional weight to it and some good lore development with also some context to the nature of our villains. Can't wait to get started on the next chapter, so see you guys soon!_

**Lastationlover5000: **

_I cannot stress how much of a relief it is for this fanfic to not include back to back battles. At least not yet, anyway. It's nice to wind down when writing this fanfic, from the constant battles of my other two fanfics. This chapter was definitely a good one to write; my counterpart got to illustrate just how strong our Robin is — and that he's a trap! We both like traps, and being able to feature one prominently definitely feels like something we can only pull off in a fanfic like this. But he isn't just a cute face; he's ridiculously strong, and able to pull off feats of magic you wouldn't expect. I hope you enjoyed our ranking system and exposition section; not often I get to write a section like that, so it was quite a bit of fun. Anyway, we'll see you all in the next chapter!_


	7. Whispers of Dissent

**Chapter 7 - Whispers of Dissent**

**Written by Demod20 and LastationLover5000**

* * *

**The Emerald Mountains**

Victory.

That's what the Robin Hoodlums had achieved. In a single night they managed to accomplish what not even the Balam Alliance had done. The assault on Mercurius Castle within the heart of Fiore's capital city of Crocus was executed without anyone knowing they were coming. Dozens of guards were injured and just as many were killed in the ensuing chaos. And the contents of the vault was effectively ripped asunder, granting yet another kingdom's wealth straight into their possession.

There was just one problem; they didn't get the whole prize, and not without cost. Three of their Frontline had been injured severely, and a fourth was displaced from the battlefield so far that the rest of the Hoodlums had to prioritize regrouping with him at the end. And with their primary healer out of commission, their leader ordered rest to recoup before leaving the country, despite them still being within line of sight of the now reinforced city they just escaped from.

The just little over twenty four lower tier brigrands of the gang were huddled up by makeshift tents, fires already made on whatever patch of soft soil that could be afforded. The makeup and appearance ranged from eyepatched pirates to lanky cutthroats, each one being a pariah or an obvious element of the underbelly of society. Being brought into the Hoodlums they were riding the high of successful theft after victorious heist which had spurred them on to make such a bold assault in the first place.

Now, with many finding themselves winded from the ordeal, began to look about with a sense of unease and uncertainty from the state their gang's lieutenants had been subjected to.

Which Handsome had made no qualms of voicing his own grievances.

"Damn it...!" The immensely large man kicked at the ground, cracking it under heel as his large-chinned face construed to a visage of anger, bare to the rest of the camp since the day they had found him. It hadn't changed after three days of rest, and he still paced around, like a caged animal looking for any excuse to break something or someone. "This is an insult! I am within view of the prize and I can't even be allowed to run rampant; this travesty is without recourse!"

"Can you chill already?" A small voice came from behind him, doing little to inhibit his stilt-like strides of his long legs. "Like, seriously. I don't think you've slept more than a few hours last night; and you're not even banged up like we were."

"What I lack in physical wounds I have an entire night stolen from my mind," The auburn haired man - messy and disheveled, no longer resembling its presentation of nobility he played in the facade previously - violently twitched as he continued to pace. "In a single instant...that scarred man...covered in blood..._stole the experience of battle and death that was rightfully mine!"_

Runt couldn't help but roll her eyes. She still felt sore from the baggage that was her unconscious colleagues carried on what was an injured body of her own. Even if it wasn't for her innately curious endurance, she had no love of doing so. To hear a man who had received no real wound but a case of amnesia and physical displacement was, while humorous at the time, was quickly growing tedious after several days of raving from the giant mage.

Of course, after regaining consciousness, he wasn't the only one playing at her nerves.

Casting a glance over at the crimson-black dressed princess of vanity and sadism, Brutalia had an entire campfire to herself by virtue of no one wanting to approach her. Ever since she had regained consciousness she had this air to her that was a seething fury. Eyes glared at the glowing embers of the flames that danced across her vision. Any attempt of conversation by her peers had been met with silence or glares. Runt understood that she was blindsided just like they all were, but the Telekinetic Mage's pride must have been wounded the greatest.

"It seems everyone is a bit on edge."

"Gee, I haven't noticed," Runt sighed, looking over at a wiry thin silhouette that hadn't been visible till just now. She graced a smile on her childish face, the woman looking up at the man who had sunken cheeks, dark circles around the eyes but bright blue eyes that defied the long unkempt mane of black hair surrounding his oblong crown. Wearing a tattered cloak with a unfastened suit-jacket with a red tie within, he leaned down to sit beside her as his pale long fingers shook in a united clasped grip. Leaning her orange-blonde haired head to the side, she gestured with her head while whispering to the man. "You feeling alright?"

"I-I'm still t-trembling," The man stuttered with admission, nodding his head with a sheepish smile. "I-I'm still not all really comfortable, even with them, y-you know? T-They scare me..."

"They're just overgrown children," The disproportionately sized woman sighed aloud, leaning back on her hands and looking up at the clouds passing overhead of the mountainside they were camped upon. "We were playing it way too safe for years. I'm just amazed that we got this far without having setbacks like this; still not fun to have, but I can see it for what it is."

"I-I'm just h-happy you're okay-"

"What was that?" She questioned, faintly hearing what he said but not quite sure she truly heard it.

"I-I'm just glad we made it out alright," He readjusted, forcing a smile as his eyes squinted shut towards her. "If I lost any of my comrades now, I don't know what I would've done w-with m-myself!"

"You won't get rid of me that easily, Mirror," She replied with a wink, nudging him with a playful push of her knuckled hand. "As long as we're together, nothing will take us down."

"Right," Mirror admitted, calming a bit as she said that.

A few murmurs and crackles of the fire passed, silence coming between them again. There was an eerie unease that they could feel. It wasn't just the grunts that filled the Hoodlums' ranks. Runt herself could tell something was should've cracked open the champagne, be celebrating and glad they kicked in the doors of another home of entitlement and autocracy.

It wasn't guilt, that's for sure. An omen?

"KEEP YOUR HANDS TO YOURSELF!"

A shriek suddenly brought the pair's eyes to look over. On reflex, Mirror had disappeared from view, leaving Runt alone by her squatting point. The angrily pacing Handsome halted, lurching around to glance in irritation at the cause of commotion.

There, they could see Brutalia snarled in a standing turn towards what looked like Eris Vythis approaching her from behind. She had the hands of healing light emanating from her armored palms, a halo of yellow glowing behind her head. The rosy haired woman looked aghast at the response, her ruby eyes blinking with surprise as she backed away from the shrill speaking woman of dirty blonde hair.

"I...had no intent of ill towards you, Brutalia," Eris carefully explained, disengaging her Kaleidoscope as she waved her hands with gentle emphasis. "You looked as if you were in discomfort, so I thought to ease any pain you might have been feeling-"

"I never _asked_ so keep your hands away from me, _elf!_" The ruby lipped woman sneered with visible contempt. "Everyone else got the hint. I thought you were the smart one, huh?!"

"Its just that-"

"Keep. Away. From me!" She hissed, the air swirling around threateningly, the fire of the embers she had been resting rose up in a swirl of threatening light that danced over her head in a violent rotation. "I didn't give you permission to approach me. I've done far worse to those who've offended me; want me to give you a demonstration?!"

"Please, calm yourself," The pink tressed female insisted, a white halo popping up behind her and shrouding her body in a protective veil of energy that she gathered with a clap of her armored palms. "I'd rather we not fight amongst ourselves over trivial issues. You suffered a defeat, as I and your companion have. Do not let this throw you into hysteria-"

"I was bested by a _child!_" Brutalia emphasized with bared teeth, eyes shrinking as she swung her gloved palms around with incredulity. "Worse, the child was a Dragon Slayer! Someone who was sobbing and as pitiful as that had no right to lay such devastation upon my body! I didn't permit it, nor did she earn it! And you try to console me as if I was the weakling! The _arrogance_ you have must be seeped into your bones, you pointy eared witch!"

Eris winced at that, looking hurt at having made an attempt to heal but was being shamed for doing so.

"Oh get off your soap box!" Runt snapped, bringing Brutalia's swirling glare to look straight at the miniature woman. With her hands balled up at her side, she raised a fist angrily as she glared back at manically shouting mage. "Look around you, we've all been bested more times than we can count. But did that stop us? We've robbed, beaten and killed our fair share of people, and we haven't always got to walk away with such poise like you have. Now you get KO'd, you're acting like a child! Kinda hypocritical when you talk down to me when I act like my size, isn't it?"

In a split second, Runt saw the spiraling flame lash out like a serpent towards her. She raised a hand to deflect the fire with her own sparking flame. Once it made contact with her hand, however, she cried out in pain as her body twisted with an unseen force and was thrashed across the ground with a line of sparking embers trailing across the earth.

"Runt!" Eris cried out, looking towards her colleague and then angrily back at Brutalia. "Stop it, Brutalia!"

"Or what?" Brutalia haughtily stared back. With a distant raise of her hand, she gestured Runt's twitching body into the air much to the dismay of the hidden Mirror and the fear imbued awe of the rest of the present Hoodlums. "I have a simple rule, Eris. I told everyone when I joined this little excursion that I was to be given the respect that someone of my status and power deserves. When I have a lowlife like her talk down to me, I have to teach her a lesson; and as much as you like to think, elf, you aren't my superior but my inferior. So let me teach you this using her as an example."

Swinging her hand down, the small woman was brought down with a vicious crunch while crashing deep into the earth. Dragging out like being hoisted by a rope, the invisibly tethered woman cried out as she was drawn out in a corkscrew motion across the soil, splashing across campfires that burned her and smashed through rocks and gravel of the mountainside they presided upon. Twisting about, she'd jerk upright, arms and legs spreadeagled in an undignified posture as debris clung dirtily to her cut and bruised body not more than a handful of meters aside from the helplessly staring Eris and the haughtily grinning Brutalia.

"Well-Well, not looking so tough, now are we?" The dirty blonde princess of malice proclaimed. Withdrawing a fan, she flourished it over her face, waving it just beneath her glaring eyes that looked at Runt's wincing visage. "Go on. Grovel. I want to hear that little mouth of yours beg me to make it stop."

"H-Heh," She grinned past her grimace, bringing a look of confusion on Brutalia's gaze. "Is that...all you got? You hit like you're...half my size."

A sudden jerk brought her to be face first in the earth, grounded in a telekinetic pull to skid straight towards her skirted front. A heel rose up and slammed into her head, grinding painfully against her crown as she was splayed helplessly beneath her foot.

"That insolence isn't at all becoming of you, Runt," She murmured with curl of her lips, eyes widening with sadistic glee. "It seems more punishment is required to tame that wild sense of disrespect of yours!"

"Stop this madness!" Eris cried out, her hangs swinging out with a look of dread on her face. "She doesn't deserve this!"

"I disagree," Brutalia snorted. "In fact, this has been a long time coming. Her smart mouth has to be dumbed down, and the only way is to rid her of that foolish notion of false pride."

"C-Can anyone see a problem with this?" The elven mage turned around, asking the crowd of spectating Hoodlums with a mixture of intrigue and fear on their faces. With no sign of Mirror, she looked to the squinting gaze of Handsome, and called out to him with an outstretched hand. "Handsome! There is no honor in beating someone weaker than you, nor there is sport in watching this. Will you stand by and watch a comrade of yours be brutalized in such a horrid display?!"

"Hmmmmm," The large man gripped his pronounced chin, rubbing it thoughtfully as he looked on. Even as Brutalia only gave a parting, humored glance at him, he in turn smiled ruefully back at Eris in return. "I haven't the slightest idea what kind of nonsense you're espousing. This is no different than watching animals tear each other apart. And to that I say, 'Survival of the fittest'; a credo of those who are criminals like we all are, no?"

"No way..." Eris shook in place, looking horrified at the lack of loyalty these people had for one another, even when Runt would've stood up for each and every one of them in the past.

Brutalia let out a laugh as she began to stomp down on the woman's head repeatedly, the sight of dirt and blood rising up adding to the morbid scene befitting of her moniker. Eris felt her eyes sting with tears, feeling compelled to step in but finding it difficult to push past someone of such obvious power and skill difference. If she stepped in, the others might be drawn into the fray as well, and everyone's steps of recovering would be for naught.

_I'm sorry, Runt, but please bear with it,_ The elven mage thought with her eyes clenching shut, looking away from the horrific scene. _She'll be satisfied after too long, right? You're tougher than what she can deliver. I'll try to make it up to you, I swear it!_

"That's it! You're lower than dirt! Lap it up like a good maggot!" Brutalia yelled out with mania, once again bringing out an air of fear from the Hoodlums surrounding her, with only Handsome watching with a thin smile. The stomps perforated the mountainside, with no sight of the infamous leader nor his right hand, the reprisal seemed impossible to the ruthless actions being committed.

_Crack!_

A jerk to the face, followed by what could only be seen as an absurd occurrence. A rock had slammed straight into the side of her face, knocking her off balance and staggering away from the ground planted Runt. Raising a hand to feel the bruised cheek, with blood escaping out of the corner of her mouth, she could taste a familiar copper flavor following ichor flooding her tongue.

"L-Leave her a-alone!" A stammering voice called out, louder than ever heard by anyone, that brought all eyes towards him. The wiry thin body of the tattered man who held a handful of rocks in his possession. Tears were flowing out of his eyes and off his face, the fear present in his buckling legs but overwhelmed as she raised rocks as threateningly as he could to throw them at the brutal woman. "Runt doesn't deserve this! S-So stop hurting her, you bully!"

As more projectiles flung towards her, they'd be stopped in midair by a pointed scowl. Proceeding to grind them into powder with just a glare, light of a deep red color filled the air, swirling around her as the mountainside they camped out began to stir and crack beneath her heels. Eris nervously stepped back at the sight of it, an opaque glow of pupiless white shining from her eyes with a mask of malicious energy poised towards the shaking reed that was Mirror; she looked like a demon rather than a hoop-skirted princess that she usually presented herself.

"A coward like you striking my face?! The gall...!" She raised her fan, a swirl of invisible energy made visible as a twister of psionic forces at work. "I'll kill you-!"

"Brutalia."

A single word, and the fury of the dirty blonde woman was stifled. Normally melodic, the source of it was made evident as her energy dissipated and she'd look up, seeing the heel-clasped feet riding what looked like a snowflake-shaped projection. Lowering itself down to the ground, with Bobbie standing directly behind him, the witch-hat adorned androgynous beauty coolly stared at the Telekinetic Mage with chiding chill escaping his lips.

"It seems you finally snapped and took it out on your comrades," He stated, his eyes making brief glances at the carnage to the campsite that was made in wake of the very fresh scuffle. "Runt might have said something to tip you over the edge, but this feels excessive. So tell me, Brutalia," The Generous Robin continued, looking over at her with a measure of composure that outweighed an ominous sense of pressure that left his mouth. "Do you have issues with me, to have no respect for my rules I have laid out, and act in such a disgraceful way?"

"Issues?" Brutalia visibly twitched. "Issues would be your sense of fashion, the way you speak or how you generally think of nothing of differing opinions until one breaks the rules. No, I am outright _furious_ with you, 'Generous' Robin!"

"Why is that?"

"First of all," The woman began, swinging the fan around to the rest of the onlookers that made up the Hoodlums. "You haven't let us see a coin, let alone a scrap of jewelry, since we began this tour of theft on the royals across Ishgar. We deserve a modicum amount of the bounty, yet you have denied us all of that."

"You'll be rewarded in due time," Robin replied with a scowl. "I haven't went against my word in the past. Do you think to call me a liar?"

"You certainly haven't been truthful to us either," Brutalia sneered, raising up a finger to jab at him. "Secondly, these so-called rules of yours is antithetical to the very reason any of these louts have joined you. Ever consider why we're part of the underbelly of society? We don't care for rules. I don't know about them, but I am above such petty contrivances; and you have the audacity to limit myself on what I can or cannot do when we are robbing people!"

"That's right!" Handsome bellowed, swinging a hand as he shouted across the distance towards his young leader. "You scolded me on blood I spilled but I have no memory of, but on events before, you keep denying me what I find pleasure in! We are not an order of chivalrous heroes; we are bandits-!"

In that moment, they felt a palpable wave of energy fill the air. Space warped, straining with the feeling of a chilling pressure that wore down upon them. A translucent blue aura exuded off the long-haired back, over the thin robed chest and down to the heeled feet. Moreso, his eyes held a contracted glare that poised towards the pair, his mouth pulled into a thin-lipped sneer.

"I know you are both scum, Handsome and Brutalia," He snarled, his eyes looking back and forth to the pair as they looked visibly fearful at his projection of power. "But you are useful to me, which is why I've tolerated your actions thus far. But this," He pointed a gloved hand at the ground planted Runt, retaining blood and dirt all across her small body, as he gestured right back up at Brutalia. "Is inexcusable! If you wish for payment, it will come, and it will be soon. Harming your comrades, however, is warranting of punishment."

"You...dare," Brutalia seethed, a blood red aura venting out of her body as she raised her voice into a shrill tone. "THREATEN ME-?!"

A sudden crack followed up with the red-black dressed woman thrown off her feet. A thick slab of ice, drilling into her chest threw her across the campsite, with everyone watching agape as she'd slam into a boulder hard enough to smash it into bits. Hacking up bile, the dirty blonde mage tried to right herself up, only to have a series of smaller fist sized balls of frozen water slam into her repeatedly; faster than she could even focus her magic upon.

After thirty seconds of unmitigated strikes, the barrage stopped and the woman fell to her hands and knees, spewing blood before weakly looking up at the pointed-hat outline of Robin's person. Her eyes looked to the stave as it lowered to his side in a tight gloved grip, before he turned his back to her and began to walk over towards Eris; with Brutalia rolling her eyes as she passed out from the pain.

"Does anyone else have a problem with how I run things?" Robin inquired, his cold gaze stretching around at the silent group of thieves that made up his band of Hoodlums.

Sighing, he looked to Bobbie, and spoke in a low whisper. The buxom woman nodded and began to strut over, having a quiet conversation with Handsome that brought the man's countenance to a look of fear and submission. Once she was done, she turned to walk over to Brutalia, picking her up by the scruff of her neck and dragging her across the ground in an undignified sprawl across the camp.

All the meanwhile, Eris had projected a healing light over Runt, while a disc of gold emanated behind her head.

"I-I'm sorry," She apologized, mostly to the small woman, and also the watching Generous Robin. "This is my fault. I tried to give comfort for someone who desired none. And when Runt tried to step in on my behalf, Brutalia beat her, to make herself feel better. I thought if I tried to stop her, that would cause division, and with someone as powerful as her I didn't know if I could-"

"Stop," Robin intoned, kneeling down to place a gloved hand on her shoulder. As her pink eyes rose to meet his, he smiled softly at her, if not sadly. "I understand. I appreciate your restraint but next time any of them are attacking each other, do step in. I won't blame you for what happens afterwards. Alright?"

"Y-Yes," She nodded with affirmation, grateful he was so kind to her despite feeling guilty for all of this.

"I've done some checking out," The effeminate ice holder mage announced to Eris, looking to Bobbie as she unceremoniously tossed Brutalia next to Runt. "I wager we have about two-thirds or half of the royal treasury of Fiore in our possession. Thanks to Bobbie I've also learned that, while some officials have been contacted, there aren't any signs of the Council sending in Rune Knights like we were expecting."

"So he lied after all," Bobbie intoned stonily.

"It would seem so," Robin smirked, twirling his stave around with a hand reaching up to brush past one of his cobalt jeweled earrings that dangled from his earlobes. "It makes no difference. They were all in pretty bad shape when we left them. And without a healer like Eris, it'll take some time for them to fully recover. It's unlikely they'll follow our trail before we're already exiting this land to the next one."

"To Minstral, then?" Eris inquired, her attention returning back to Runt as she turned her over to finish her healing on the small woman. "You do realize there's no kings for us to plunder their riches, right?"

"Patience, Eris, and you'll see what I'm aiming for in due time," He chided with toothy smile. "This is to help all of the unfortunate people of Ishgar held ransom by their monarchies. And with you and everyone else at my side, that dream of mine will be made into reality."

"Not everyone seems happy of being kept in the dark," The elf warned with a worried look on her face, looking over to Brutalia hesitantly before beginning to mend the wounds she sustained not but a few minutes ago. "Case and point..."

"It doesn't matter what the barbarians think," Robin shook his head, crossing his arms over his curvaceous chest. "As long as they tow the line, they could think the sky is the ground for all I care. This offense won't be repeated, though. If either of them step out of line again, they can fend for themselves and see how long they have that attitude of theirs with a larger bounty on their heads than they previously had."

"I just hope it doesn't come to that," The pink-haired enchanter confessed, biting her lower lip and closing her eyes as images of pain and blood filled her memory. "I don't want to be responsible for more suffering. I can't think of that right now."

"Well, once we leave this country, we won't have to worry about that," Robin told her with a smile. Standing upright, he walked to the center of the camp and declared aloud. "As for the rest of you, I know many of you are weary after such a long time without any reward, unlike in the past. But I assure you, once we rest for another couple of nights, we will leave this country behind and have the worth of our loot be accounted for. Everyone will be justly rewarded, in more ways than one. We're almost to the end and for that, you have my thanks, my Hoodlums."

A round of neutral applause was had. Yes, they were satiated by his usual charisma but there was no true vigor behind it. The events that happened here had left a foul taste in everyone's mouths.

How long could they stay united under promises without real prizes held in their hands?

_Just a little longer,_ The Generous Robin thought, looking back at Crocus with a distant stare. _And I'll free the people of their king cursed misery; once and for all!_

* * *

**Mercurius Castle, One Week After the Incident**

A solid week had passed since the Robin Hoodlums assault on Mercurius Castle's treasury, and the group's surprising victory against Team Wendy of Fairy Tail. Wendy, in an effort to avoid straining herself and exhausting her magic, had allowed Doranbolt and Charle to heal naturally. Wendy had tried to heal them, even at her own expense.

"No!" Doranbolt had said firmly. "My wounds are deep; the first-aid you performed, and the work of the Healers, will be more than enough. Wendy, please, let yourself recover."

Heeding his words, Wendy had let her friends recover under the care of the Healers and their own bodies' hard work, showing up daily to keep an eye on them. Charle had remained unconscious for longer than Doranbolt; for all Wendy could tell, the shock of immense pressure and pain on such a small body had rendered her exceed comatose. This only added to Wendy's worry, despite the Healers assuring Wendy that Charle would wake up in time, they merely needed to tend to her wounds first.

So the time had passed, eating away at Wendy. Max, whose wounds were less substantial, recovered the quickest, only when Doranbolt was more-or-less good as new did Team Wendy mobilise again. Charle, however, remained unconscious. Wendy sat outside the ward, her hands wrung together. She'd already been inside to visit; Doranbolt was on the end of his mending period, but her companion Exceed still lay unconscious and attached to magical life support to keep her vital functions moving.

_I couldn't protect Charle..._ Wendy knew that marinating in her own misery would do no good, but the thoughts ate away at her. _Doranbolt is fine, keeps telling me that this isn't my fault...but I gave the orders and they listened to me. Max and Charle both...and Charle got hurt so badly because of it... _Lost in her thoughts, the young Dragon Slayer didn't notice Max walking down the hall, easing his back against the wall next to her.

"How're ya doin'?" he asked quietly, arms folded as he cast the young girl an aside. Before the Tenrō Island incident, he'd never properly spoken to Wendy beyond the occasional greetings. She was still the newest member to Guild, and while everyone in Fairy Tail had quickly become attached to her — she was adorable, who could blame them? — it was Natsu's group that Wendy had become fast friends with. So even now, when she was hurting the way she was, Max didn't know how best to help her, and chose the only way he could: approach her as himself.

"I'm..." Wendy struggled to find the words. "I know you told me this wasn't my fault...but I gave you and Charle orders back then...you all followed me in that fight...and we lost horribly. You were injured...Charle is still unconscious...Doranbolt nearly died protecting us..." Wendy felt a firm hand gently place itself on her head. Turning, she saw Max crouch down until he was eye-level with Wendy; sharp black eyes met wide, brown ones.

"Wendy...all of us are Mages of Fairy Tail," Max said firmly. "We followed _you_ on this mission, yes, but we did it for our Guild's pride. Doranbolt, Charle, and myself were more than aware of the risk that would accompany an S-rank mission, and we're still here. None of this is your fault, and you're being fantastically strong given what you're going through — what we're all going through." Max's smile brimmed with confidence and kindness, and Wendy's misery stifled in her throat. "Doranbolt didn't fight tooth and nail so you could regret it. He did it to protect you. There's no sense in beating yourself up over this; if you're a Mage of Fairy Tail, then hold your head high. Any scars we get or pain we suffer through are the proof we fought for Fairy Tail."

"...proof...that we fought for Fairy Tail..." Wendy repeated, her voice quiet. Would Charle be content with that? She didn't know...but she did know Max was right about the fact that everyone, herself included, had made their own choices. All four of them had chosen to fight for Fairy Tail. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand, stifling what felt like oncoming tears. Wendy knew she'd been crying too much lately. "Thanks, Max. I'm sorry...I've really been such a drag lat—ouch!"

Wendy raised both hands up to rub her head. Max had chopped her lightly on the skull, his face mischievously smiling through the scolding. "No more of that; I'm not going to stand for you putting yourself down, and I'm sure Charle would say the same, bossy as she is. You're doing fine, and don't let anyone, even yourself, tell you otherwise."

"R-Right," Wendy replied, still rubbing her head. In the end, she smiled anyway. "Thank you, Max." Then Wendy voiced a question she felt like she had to, from a junior to her senior. "But...aren't yo nervous? We're going to be chasing after really strong individuals." She remembered Grimoire Heart, Master Hades, and how difficult those battles had been. The scope was different, but she was so mentally unprepared for anything right now that these battles were just as challenging.

"Oh hell yes, I'm nervous," replied Max grimly. "We're going after some people who are crazy strong and don't give a crap about walking all over us. But if this were easy, it wasn't be S-rank, would it? Besides..." he scratched the back of his bowl cut sheepishly. "How would I look if I acted pathetic in front of someone small like you? I should at least act the part of a man, don't you think?"

Wendy giggled. It was a bit difficult to imagine Max acting like a man, though she was too polite to say it and even inwardly apologised for thinking it, and only nodded to the bemused man before her. "Let's go visit Doranbolt, Max."

Wendy and Max filed into the hospital wing, passing by Healers who were exiting at the same time as they entered. The beds were still full of Arcadios' men, though Arcadios himself was already fully healed. He attributed his recovery in confidence to Team Wendy as a result of the Jade Amulet he wore, a gift from Princess Hisui herself. It had powerful protective qualities, and lessened the damage he would normally take to less than half; in addition, simply wearing it sped up his recuperative powers. With Arcadios released, now back in the service of Her Highness, only Doranbolt and Charle remained as patients Wendy and Max recognised personally. Charle lay unconscious, still, a special Lacrima hovering over her body to keep her functions operating properly.

Doranbolt was sitting up, removing the bandages with the permission of the Head Healer. Seeing Wendy and Max enter the room, the young man offered his comrades a weak smile. "Good morning."

"Morning."

"I'm back, Doranbolt."

Max stepped in front of Wendy, walking over to Doranbolt. The former Rune Knight's face brimmed with a mixture of restrained hostility and confusion, evidently taking Max's sudden approach as an aggressive move. The two stared at each other in silence, and Wendy felt immediate worry, glancing back and forth at the both of them. As she was about to speak, Max extended a hand to Doranbolt. Doranbolt, surprised, looked from Max's hand to Max himself, confused.

"...We got off on the wrong foot when we started this mission, Doranbolt," Max said, his voice loud and clear. "I was suspicious of you at first, but I want to say it again, as I said it yesterday. You've...more than proven yourself as one of us. So officially...welcome to Fairy Tail."

The scarred man was stunned.

He had expected to be given a begrudging acceptance, or even more standoffish attitude towards him. But, in just a short amount of time, their actions in cooperating together had led the two down similar perils. He had thought the man indecisive and a bit of a coward who was guilted into acting on Wendy's behalf...but after seeing his wounds and how he's taken time after time to stand up to her when even he was at a loss for what to say...

Tears welled up in his eyes as a smile broke across his normally stoic mask of a face. Wiping his face with a sleeve, he stretched a hand out and gripped Max's hand firmly, shaking it as he looked more seriously at the man, despite feeling overwhelmed, "T-Thank you, Max. I am sorry for doubting you, as well but...you've more than proven that you really are a Mage of Fairy Tail."

Wendy didn't know how to process this. Were all boys like this? She didn't dare to think. Sighing, the little Dragon Slayer smiled with a slight weariness. "I'm happy for you two...please, continue to get along in the future."

Both men nodded at Wendy, breaking apart their handshake and smiling sheepishly at the girl's expression. It seemed they'd caused her some slight trouble. The awkward silence created by the newfound bond between Doranbolt and Mest was broken — almost mercifully — by one of the Royal Guardsmen, who entered the hospital wing to inform Team Wendy that, as the bulk of their team had now recovered, Princess Hisui was requesting an audience with them.

Wendy, Max, and Doranbolt exchanged glances. The trio had specifically been avoiding debriefing the Princess of the entire situation over the course of the week, having seen her only when they, and Arcadios' men had been taken to the Hospital Wing. Exclusing those brief sightings, the trio had been too embarrassed to even show their faces in front of Fiore's princess. It seemed, however, their time of hiding from her had come to an end, and she'd sent a messenger herself.

"We can't put it off much longer..." Max said sheepishly.

"I was still hoping there'd be a way to save face..." Doranbolt said.

"...Maybe she won't be too hard on us," Wendy suggested hopefully.

* * *

**Mercurius Throne Room**

Standing in front of Hisui, who sat upright on her father's throne, was a wholly different experience now than it had been merely a week ago. Doranbolt, Wendy, and Max were not only down a member, but completely and utterly expecting the beautiful princess to rebuke them harshly and dismiss them from her presence. The three stood in absolute silence before an equally taciturn Hisui, whose expression was unreadable to the nth degree.

"Your Majesty, we—" Max began, only to be silence when Hisui raised a hand.

"I'm glad to see you all have recovered," Hisui said, lowering her hand, and her face broke into a kind smile. "Were you all fearing my words?"

"I...but we failed, Your Majesty," Wendy stammered, Doranbolt and Max nodding along with her confusion. "They...they broke through to the treasury vault..."

"Yes, but I did not summon you to hold it against you," replied Hisui smoothly. "To be upfront, I would like to know if this setback has done anything to diminish your motivation? Will..." She frowned, unsure of how to ask a question. Years of being royalty had never put her in the position to ask for favours. "...do you still intend to undertake this task?"

Wendy was flabbergasted. Glancing at Max and Doranbolt, who shared looks of bewilderment, she knew she wasn't alone. They...weren't being punished? They weren't being sent back to Magnolia? She was going to let them try again?

"Y-Yes!" Wendy nodded firmly.

"The objectives have changed slightly, but our target remains the same," replied Doranbolt.

"Fairy Tail doesn't let itself get set back by something like this," chimed in Max.

_The burning spirit of Fairy Tail! That's it!_ Hisui's thoughts were childlike and full of the sort of excitement a younger girl would have had. She and her father were big fans of Fairy Tail and their exploits — even if Fairy Tail's raucous nature had led to property damage on more than one occasion, it was only one of the many things that made them exciting. The young princess fought for her composure, however; inside, she was blissfully smiling, externally, she wore the veneer of Fiore's heir apparent. Clearing her throat, she continued.

"After a further investigation, we've determined that two-thirds of the contents within our treasury has been taken," Hisui explained. "Needless to say, this is a heavy blow. We can't be certain that the Robin Hoodlums will not return to our Castle for a second strike, yet I don't want to give them another chance. Yet..." She hesitated again. "I'm ashamed to say that, even with all of my resources, I have neither a method to find them, nor a plan to reattain our country's wealth."

It was Wendy's turn to smile. Stepping forward, at the head of her group, she pointed to her face — specifically her nose — in the same way Wendy. "Your Majesty, I'm a Dragon Slayer. The leader of the Robin Hoodlums has a _very_ distinct scent; I still remember it, and I can sniff them out!"

Hisui didn't bother to hide her amazement this time, as it was couple with the prospect of regaining what had been stolen from herself and her father; thus, she allowed her face to light up. "Do you mean this, Wendy?"

"Yes," nodded the little Dragon Slayer emphatically. "And even more, I have a plan!" To Hisui's eager ears, Wendy explained the crucial details of her plans, details that Max and Doranbolt were familiar with, having been there when Wendy's first told them of the idea she'd concocted. Hisui listened attentively, nodded where it was appropriate, before settling both hands onto her lap.

"I approve of this plan," she replied, regaining some of her former dignity. "If it plays out as you suggest...it's very likely that it just might work."

"May we ask for your blessing then, Your Mastesty?" Doranbolt adopted a former manner, in spite of the Princess' continued attempts to keep everything at ease. Bending at the knee, the former Rune Knight bowed his head. "This is still a formal request Fairy Tail has undertaken at the request of the Royal Family: if you do not give us the go-ahead, we will have to return home."

A broader smile crossed Hisui's face; thrusting an arm forward, her bosom bouncing, she boldly declared, "You have the blessing of the Fiore Royal Family, Fairy Tail! Continue with your mission!"

"Yes!" came the three-pronged reply.

"As a reward for your determination and strong urge to save life," The Princess announced, gesturing to her side where the armored man - now clad in his uniform grey armor, to replace the damaged Lily suit - stepped forward with a stoic expression on his face. "My confidant has something to say to you."

"I have...misjudged you before, Fairy Tail," Arcadios began to say, his eyes closing as he spoke, his hands shaking at his sides. "When the unthinkably happened, I believed I could succeed where numerous kingdoms haven't. And for that foolishness, I had nearly gotten my men and I killed. Had it not been for you, there would have been many more lives taken not just of my squadron but of everyone in this castle. For that reason, I ask humbly," He bowed, his mop of hair remaining erect despite its bushy state, as he cried out without holding back. "That I may be given a chance, to fight at your side and repay the favor for this debt that weighs within me!"

* * *

_An uneven sloshing of water filled the ears of a terrified observer. Their eyes filled with the shimmering blue of swirling waves, moving unnaturally for simple, flowing streams. It coalesced into a single shape, snaking its way forward. In a rush of motion, it impaled a small figure — thin bodied, sort, flowing blue hair — piercing her heart in seconds. The drilling torrent burst through the other side of the girl, blood mixing in with the liquid, letting her impaled body slip down further._

_When the water vanished, the body of Wendy Marvell crashed unceremoniously to the ground, unmoving._

In a hospital bed, safe in a castle many miles away from where this vision had taken place, the Exceed Charle woke, shaking in fear. A quick look around told Charle everything she needed to know; whatever that horrible dream had been was not where she was now, but she also wasn't in the Mercurius Castle Treasury. "Where...what..." Placing a pawed hand to her large head, Charle tried to remember everything. The feeling of falling unconscious, preceded only by a jolt of pain so sharp and terrible that she literally could not bear it.

"It's fine, Charle," the soothing voice of the person most important to Charle filled her ears, relaxing the tension in her body. Wendy Marvell — mercifully whole and hale in Charle's eyes — was standing at her bedside, gently placing her arms around the Exceed in an embrace. "The battle ended a week ago...you've been here, in the Mercurius Castle Hospital Wing."

"A week...?" The Exceed felt confusion, and it showed visibly on her face. Another cursory glance around the bed she sat showed Lacrima which had floated around her, sustaining vital functions, but were now at rest. "Did we complete the mission, at least?" She desperately wanted to believe that dream was nothing more than a nightmare born of worry, rather than a bonafide vision. Her powers had always been unclear. Perhaps this meant nothing at all.

Wendy shook her head. "No...they got the better of us..." The young Dragon Slayer didn't want to admit that it was shortly after Charle got wounded, she'd been unable to focus on their battle, yet it seemed to show on her face. "But we're going to track them down today and correct that mistake! We'll do better this time!"

"I...see..." Charle forced a smile. "Right!" She tried to sit up, only for Wendy to gently sit her back down.

"Charle...please, for my sake, stay here and recover a little more?" Wendy was hurt to say it, and even more hurt to see the expression on her companion's face. It was beyond upset; it was rejection in a single look, and Wendy knew that outright telling Charle her concern would hurt her even more. However, is Wendy focused on protecting Charle, it would completely upend her entire plan, and she _would _sacrifice the mission to protect Charle if push came to shove.

Charle wanted to protest, but she part of her knew that the reason the first go-around with the Hoodlums had failed was because of her. If she accompanied them on this next mission...what if that vision came to pass because of her? Would _she_ be responsible for Wendy's death because Wendy had to protect her? The vision of Wendy's crumpled body on the floor, a hole gaping wide where her torso had once been, caused Charle to shake in terror. She'd had visions before, but none quite showed her best friend in such a state.

"I..." Charle hesitated to form the words. "Alright, Wendy. I'll rest here...but please, be safe. Whoever you're fighting...there's something more to them than what they seem. I saw..." Charle couldn't outright say that what she saw was her best friend's corpse "...something...please be careful."

"I will!" Wendy nodded, hugging Charle tightly. "While you rest, Charle, we'll get this done and I'll come back safe to you!" Releasing her Exceed, Wendy turned away quickly, walking towards the door. She was shaking, but her face was hidden properly for her friend, and thus the stream of tears was known only to Wendy. She didn't want to part from Charle, even temporarily, but losing her best friend to these people was something she wouldn't be able to cope with right now. _If I lose Charle, I don't know what I'd do...! I'm sorry, Charle...!_

* * *

Exiting the castle, Wendy had stopped crying, though she was still rubbing her eyes. Doranbolt, Arcadios, and Max were waiting outside for her.

"...That wasn't easy, was it?" Doranbolt asked.

Wendy shook her head. "No...I want Charle to be with me. Ever since she hatched, we haven't been apart. But...I _can't_ lose her to these people."

"We'll be back to her, Wendy," Doranbolt placed a hand on the younger woman's shoulders, gripping it tightly. "We just need to focus on the goal for now."

"Right!" Wendy nodded firmly. "Max, Doranbolt, let's set out!" In an effort to combat her misery, Wendy let out a ferocious cry, pumping her fist in the air. Max and Doranbolt rallied behind Wendy, and the group set off, Wendy at the lead. Following her nose, they were sure to find their quarry. Even with Charle's cryptic warning hanging overhead, Wendy put it in the back of her mind and ran forward. All that mattered was completing the mission and returning home safely.

* * *

**A/N:  
Demod20: **_This was an interesting chapter. I'm sure some people have rightly been siding against the Robin Hoodlums since we've introduced them. But, we wanted to show a different side to them from their perspective. Not all of them are bad, just misguided or mislead. Showing a softer side, and then cruel elements, helps give perspective that they aren't all cut from the same cloth. The Generous Robin himself continues to prove why he's in charge and that he doesn't tolerate infighting among his own cohorts; that and he knows better than to trust everything on face value. It'll be interesting to see how they change over the course of this Arc, much in the same way I'm liking how my co-author has tackled the development of our heroes ^^ Anyways, keep being safe and clean, and we'll see you in the next eventual update!_

**LastationLover5000: **_I had a lot of fun with this chapter. My counterpart's section with the Robin Hoodlums was a fantastic showcase of character, especially given what we've seen of Brutalia and Handsome. Both can be very composed...until things do not go their way. Two peas in a pod, and definitely the sort to watch out for. But the group has respectable people. Runt, and this mysterious Mirror, Eris, and the Generous Robin himself. Max has turned out to be an unforeseen gift a far as I am concerned. The guy was used mostly for a stupid gag in the original series, but given all we have are the lesser guild members to work with, we get to bring out their stronger traits, and Max, for whatever he is, is a loyal Fairy Tail mage. And now that he and Doranbolt have put aside their differences, we can see some real shit now. Meanwhile, though, Charle had a terrifying vision, but has also been left behind by Wendy for her own safety. It's going to be an interesting few chapters! We'll see you soon!_


	8. Onigokko

**Chapter 8 - Onigokko  
Written by LastationLover5000 and Demod20**

* * *

Team Wendy had rearranged their formation since departing the city. They proceeded in single file: Wendy still lead the party, capitalising on her sense of smell to track their targets. Following Wendy directly was Max, who could use his Sandstorm to cover the widest range of attack. Doranbolt, placed centre in line, was their most useful lookout, and with his Teleportation, would be able to easily deal with disturbances out of the reach of the others. Taking up the rear was Arcadios, whose heavy armor and study nature made him the perfect tank to protect against potential ambushes.

All in all, it was a brilliant strategy devised by Arcadios himself, with the teams best interests in mind, making use of his military expertise. For such a rag-tag team, even Doranbolt was impressed at the way the man had assembled them. Slung over Arcadios' bag was a satchel, clanging with the sound of hardened material. When a curious Max had inquired what was inside the satchel, Arcadios had simply replied that it was gong to be their trump card in the case of an emergency. Keeping it hoisted, Arcadios privately hoped that they didn't have to use it at all.

_Lady Wendy's plan is truly sound_, thought the Royal Knight, following the mages easily despite his heavy armour. _It is unwise for me to treat her as a simple child; if her plan pays off, Her Majesty will have the contents of the treasury back before the rise of the morning sun._

Continuing to move at an even pace, the quartet had passed the border of Crocus over an hour ago, entering the wooded area nestled between the Capital City and the mountain range that provided it a natural protection from invasions. Wendy turned her nose skyward, keeping track of the scent of her quarry, inwardly grateful that they were in the season with the least rain. _If anything had washed away their scent, we'd be going back to Fairy Tail empty handed._ Wendy pursued a pathway that leads towards a natural mountain trail, and she came to a stop.

The procession fell into line behind her, Max nearly tripping over the young girl, while Doranbolt had the foresight to ease into a stop, and Arcadios used the weight of his own armor to aid in halting.

"Is something the matter, Wendy?" asked Doranbolt, peering over Max's shoulder to be sure Wendy hadn't grazed her knee.

Wendy shook her head, but held up a hand. Tentatively, she took a breath. Her eyes widened, and Wendy began to breathe in deeply...before she instead began to _eat._ As if she hadn't eaten at all, the young girl scooped fistfuls — could it be called such? — of air into her mouth. Trying to maintain her dignity, she wiped her mouth carefully. Her three comrades stared at her amazed. "This...this air is delicious! I've never felt so energised from natural air before! What is this place, Arcadios?!"

Arcadios recovered quickly, yet his jaw was still slack, surprise leaving slower than he'd expected. He knew she was a Dragon Slayer, he'd heard through the rumours. But to see one actively eat the _air_ took more than a moment to process. Wendy stared at him, concerned, forcing the Knight to shake his head, airing out the confusion. "We're at the base of the Jade Mountains, Lady Wendy," replied Arcadios. "These mountains are a holy sight for the land of Fiore, and are intentionally kept undisturbed from outside intervention. They also prove to be nearly insurmountable for traditional forces — the true height of the tallest mountain ranges somewhere around 5,000 metres — and as such have managed to retain a near pristine natural state."

"So that's why..." Wendy filled her lungs with air yet again, finding to her amazement that she didn't even need to consume this air. Simply the act of breathing in and out fueled her, gave her energy. "The magical power is so _pure_ in this air. It's beautiful." Shaking her head, Wendy turned back towards the trail. "Sorry for stopping us, everyone! I was taken aback! We can go forward!"

The other three nodded, and they resumed formation, Wendy leading the pack up the trail. Wendy realised that she'd been mistaken to consider the light foliage they'd run through on the way here 'wood'. The farther they ran up the mountain, eventually losing the path that had formed naturally over the years and being forced to rely completely on Wendy's nose to find the path of least resistance, Wendy noted the ancient trees that towered above them. Roots, gnarled and aged, stood firm, requiring the group to make wide leaps in order to avoid falling over. Sunlight broke through in broken rays, speckling the ground in patterns of light, so as to not leave them in total darkness. Leaves — both dead and alive — were trampled underfoot, the crunching muted by the natural sounds of the forest.

And Wendy could hear _everything_. The rushing waters in the distance, the various cries of mammals, the singing and chirping of birds high in the canopies. If anything, these sounds spurred her on. Wendy needed courage right now. The energy the forest provided her aside, her thoughts dwelt on Charle; so Wendy listened to the sounds of the hunters, the predators making their kills in the dense cover of the trees...and used it to fuel her, honing in completely on the scent of the Generous Robin and his merry men.

_For Charle, Wendy...become a dragon!_ Her thoughts burned like fire in her mind, the young Dragon Slayer pushing herself forward.

"These Robin Hoodlums certainly chose a clever place to conceal themselves," assessed Doranbolt. "Without Wendy's nose, we'd be running blind through this forest. In fact, I'd say that, without a Dragon Slayer, it'd be difficult to traverse this place safely."

Max shuddered. "That's a terrifying thought. This lot are already difficult enough, but to use this place as cover without a Dragon Slayer? You're making them out to be monsters, Doranbolt."

"They are, in their own way," interjected Arcadios. "Monsters willing to destabilise countries for the sake of their own self-worth."

"He was so self-assured when he spoke, I almost felt like I could believe him," Max admitted. "He's...not entirely wrong when he said that Fairy Tail is a reckless guild. We're known for recklessness, property damage, and causing general unrest, even if we do get the job done."

Wendy nodded solemnly. She hadn't been with the Guild as long, but its reputation preceded itself; the Generous Robin hadn't spoken lies when he'd ticked off what he'd considered to be their offences.

Doranbolt ruefully agreed internally. Fairy Tail was certainly a thorn in the side of the Council, causing the most trouble possible for a Legal Guild, while still staying within the lines of the law enough that they rarely interfered with Fairy Tail, and could merely grumble behind the scenes. After spending a week with the Guild and Wendy, however, Doranbolt felt that the Council may have been misguided. He'd even spoken in Fairy Tail's defence long before this.

"And yet the very rulers of Fiore sought you," replied Arcadios severely. "Fairy Tail may have a reputation for recklessness, but to Fiore, your Guild has remained the symbol of power and hope for years. Her Grace and His Majesty themselves are very taken with your Guild, very much indeed; for whatever this 'Robin' may have said about you, he has only fed you one side of the story. Perhaps you should look at it from the other side as well."

Wendy was briefly silenced. At first, she didn't think words would appropriately be able to express her gratitude to Arcadios for this. It wasn't enough to shatter her doubt, but it did bolster her confidence.

"Thank you..."

The remainder of the journey was a silent one, however, the hearts of the party had been struck with renewed fervor. Arcadios' words made their goal seem feasible. Navigating through the woods, Wendy felt the scent of her target spike in her nose, triggering her to come to a stop. She raised a hand, signalling the others, and quietly held a finger to her mouth, indicating the need for quiet. Her companion's questioning looks were answered by a thin finger, Wendy pointing just over a sloping hill.

Keeping themselves low, pressing their bodies into the foliage, the group peered down over the incline.

There they were. The Robin Hoodlums entire camp. Wendy's eyes were better than the others, having the sight of a Dragon, and she could see, even among the no-names that she knew nothing about, the figures of the enemies they encountered back at Mercurius Castle. Moreover, their scents were the strongest — dragons could smell strength as well as traditional odor, and the main group radiated power in a way the lesser underlings simply didn't — so pinpointing them was easier. The Generous Robin was even easier; to Wendy, his smell was sweet, like syrup. She associated this scent now with danger, and instinctively took a crawl backwards.

"How are we going to approach this?" asked Max, eyeing Wendy carefully.

"I'm not sure," replied Wendy. "They're all alert right now; I can sense panic in their smell, though it isn't from us. I don't even think they know we're here."

"We'll strike by night," whispered Doranbolt, as if it were the world's most obvious answer. "Covert: that was the term we used to describe this mission. Our goal isn't an all out brawl. So we wait for nightfall, and strike when the security of the enemy is at is weakest, when their weapons lay forgotten and their guard has been dropped."

Wendy nodded, and Max clapped his hands — earning a look of ire from everyone present, and he apologised quickly for the excess noise. "That's a great idea, Doranbolt," replied Arcadios. "I'd expect such of a former Rune Knight. Normally, my honour as a Knight of the Kingdom would not allow for such underhanded tactics...but the state of the Kingdom is at stake, and Her Grace is relying on us to see this mission through. For her sake, I will throw aside honour."

"I don't really like it either," replied Wendy, her eyes shifting between her friends and the enemy camp down below. "But it's the best chance we've got for my plan to work. Nighttime it is."

"Let's get some rest," suggested Doranbolt. "No reason to attack them when we're exhausted. I'll take first watch."

* * *

**Jade Mountains, Robin Hoodlums Encampment**

Robin stepped out of his tent into the cool night air. The feel of the crisp air on his skin made him feel so alive. It was perfectly cool, and the lack of humidity in the night made it the ideal time for the young man to enjoy the outside. This joyful experience clashed with the bitter thoughts that raced through his mind. Mere moments before, he had to _force_ Brutalia and Handsome to retire for the night, while at the same time trying to ensure they didn't keep assaulting Runt and Mirror. With Eris and Bobbie watching the camp for disturbances, he felt comfortable enough to embrace the clean air of the mountains.

Leaning against a tree — the damp bark feeling refreshing — the young mage began to wonder precisely how long he could keep the group together. Everything he'd strove for, everything he'd built, was for the greater good of the forgotten and the downtrodden.

_But will they see that? Especially Handsome and Brutalia...if I tell them my true plan...will they fall in line willingly?_

With these thoughts haunting his mind, Robin began to doze off, feeling the night take him...

...only to be awoken abruptly by the sound of an explosion in the centre of camp.

His immediate gut reaction was to believe that Brutalia or Handsome was having a fit. It wasn't something unexpected, especially since Runt was hurt so badly by the aforementioned woman. But, there was a distinct _smell_ he swore wasn't there before; and a presence that was so distinct it couldn't be mistaken from before.

From his post, the hill with a tree he had chosen to lay against only moments ago, he could see down at the host of tents and campfires below, with bodies scurrying out or being thrown off their feet. Amidst the Hoodlums he saw a gleaming streak of metal, wreathed in a magical aura not of his own making, swinging a blade with an emerald sheen to it. Each stroke of this weapon cut through wildly cast spells and cut into the mages that were foolish enough to get too close. Even without his Lily Armor, Robin recognized the man.

"Show no mercy!" Arcadios bellowed out, the matte grey armor having a distinctly white-outline of light surrounding himself. It ran down the length of his Jade Sword, humming with a verdant sound as he held it to bare before running it through a nearby charging doppelganger of a Mage's construction; dispelling it forthwith. "Strike them while they're still off balance! Give them no time to recover!"

As if on cue, Robin's eyes dilated, seeing a pair of people he remembered all too well. Out from the Holy Knight's left came Max Alors, the bowl-cut adorned man with a long-sleeved deep cobalt shirt to replace his bright navy shirt that was torn and bloodied from the week before. He too was wrought in a majestic aura, enhancing him to a point that he gestured with such efficiency that he may have just been posing but managed to unleash a massive swathe of sand. It rampaged through his opposition, crashing through a handful of Hoodlums while decimating the campsite in his reach.

From the Chief of the Cherry Blossom Squadron's right, came her. The Wendy Marvell, the sole survivor of the reported calamity of the Fairy Tail Guild. The girl who, on the surface looked woefully insignificant and pitiable; but now he saw her swinging her arms around to unleash a torrential gale that seemed to duplicate the wave of Sandstorm Magic her comrade was unleashing on Robin's own comrades.

"Robin," He heard from the base of the hill's slope, causing him to look over to see Bobbie's curvaceous person looking up with Eris flanking her left. "It seems we've been tracked."

"That shouldn't be possible...!" The elf cried out, looking around herself as she tried to eye anything that seemed like other enemy troop movements. "The Jade Mountains make tracking via magical means near impossible! And travel through it even harsher without my Kaleidoscope to assist a group as large as ours. How could they find us amidst such a range of earth in such a short amount of time-?"

"It _can't_ be..." Robin began to trail off, his eyes narrowing at the cobalt haired girl as he witnessed one of her minions rush her, a blade of wind in hand. The magical tool that couldn't be stopped, using intense rotation of air currents to turn its weapon into a hyper frictional saw of the utmost cutting pressure.

Swinging it towards Wendy, she merely leaped up and opened her mouth-

-chomping down on it, eating the blade of wind that came from the hilt of the weapon.

"She _isn't_...!" He uttered aloud, his cherub face paling as she saw from this distance her swallowing a lump down her throat.

"Sky Dragon's," Wendy began to inhale, her body inflating around her flat upper torso towards her neck.

And then, hilariously, she let out a raucous belch.

"UUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRP!" She spewed out, a gaseous blast of Sky Dragon Magic - unrefined and chaotic- slamming the man along with a slew of the cohorts caught in its cyclone's wake. Slamming the tents, the campfires and a good number of the Hoodlums into the hill that Robin stood upon, it crashed with a resounding boom, fragmenting it and shaking it violently.

"Oh...oh my," Eris blinked, her face sweating as Bobbie stifled a snicker with a hand placed over her mouth.

"I didn't think she was the real deal, but that cements it," Robin stated seriously, icily staring down at Wendy from the distance separating them, now surrounded by a swathe of unconscious and brutalized bodies of his merry men. "Wendy Marvell really is a bona fide Dragon Slayer; _let's make her a priority target._"

As those words left his mouth, he'd feel something unnatural transpire. Air being displaced by mass that once didn't exist, replacing it and moving with incredible momentum. Through sheer instinct he turned around to swipe at it with a gloved left hand, severing the ground through sheer release of magical energy. What he saw was the outline of a shimmering silhouette, evading him entirely but not striking back.

A sudden lack of weight over his cyan colored crown made him realize something. Reaching up to tuck at the brim of his hat he'd find its lip absent, along with the rest of its comfortable fabric. Gaping, he turned around and saw a familiar scarred man having leaped away, his back turned towards the three as he maneuvered like a human javelin towards the other three attackers at the front of the Hoodlums' camp.

"Hey! He's got it!" Max cried out with a jovial smile.

"Doranbolt...!" Wendy let out a relieved cry.

"Hold fast," Arcadios encouraged, keeping himself reserved as he tried to keep watch of any other straggling Hoodlums they hadn't yet bested. "It'll take him a few moments to whisk us all home. Be ready for a last second act of desperation."

"They weren't here for us," Robin processed, his eyes shrinking to pins, his teeth grinding against each other and his incisors baring almost ferally. Pupils within his eyes threatened to turn into slits instead of their normal spherical shape, his magical energy unleashed in a swirling pyre of teal-silver light. "They were after their _damn_ treasure the whole time!"

"Orders?" Bobbie inquired stonily, seemingly unfazed by these events and looking up expectantly at the androgynous youth.

"Bring me my hat back," He ordered, his voice seething as he turned his back to his two lieutenants, walking back to the tree to grasp his icicle shaped stave. "_By any means necessary._"

Bobbie's countenance shifted upon the wording of his command. A normally placid expression of stoicism gave way to a wide-eyed glare that poised towards the back of Doranbolt that just touched down in front of his comrades. Coiling her thick luscious thighs, muscles became defined and fluctuated, her upper body swaying as she bent her back and head in a limber U shape.

Then, in a flash of light, she lunged straight towards the four smashing into the earth with a viscous splash of fiery blackness.

"W-What-?!" Max cried out, his hands crisscrossing to defend his face, the enchantment protecting him but still forcing him back a considerable distance.

Arcadios grimaced, finding himself grinding at his heels if only because of his heavier personage.

Wendy herself tumbled backwards, righting herself up in a somersault as she looked up with fear in her eyes.

There, once the voluptuous woman of fair appearance was now adorned in a wreathe of animated darkness. Like a fabric of glossy onyx, it swirled consistently, highlighting her female form but not revealing any skin, save for her extenuated blue eyes. Glaring past a domino mask of sorts, the now kunoichi appearing woman glared towards Doranbolt, and the scarred man felt his guard raised at meeting eyes with the woman proper.

"You," Bobbie spoke in an even tone. "Give the hat back. Now."

"And if I say no?" Doranbolt inquired with a hint of a smile curling at the left.

A blitzing streak of shadow thrust towards him, forcing the man to use Direct Line to veer to the right at the nick of time. His eyes widened at the sight, seeing a blade spearing across the totality of the campsite towards the mess of bodies and camp supplies at the hill Wendy sent them crashing it. Retracting in an instant, he turned to look back at her with gritted teeth, noticing her brandishing a _wakizashi_ in her right hand; the weapon that seemingly had manifested a lance that was several dozen lengths longer than it appeared to be.

"That's an interesting magic you have there," The Teleporter commented, trying to keep her attention veered away from the other three as they tried to reorient themselves. "That wouldn't happen to be a Requip Magic, per chance?"

"You have good eyes, Shield and Sword of Fiore," Bobbie intoned stonily, her eyes glaring poignantly as she curled her body back into an exaggerated U posture, making her shapely covered chest dance much to the other Fairy Tail mages' chagrin. "But I am Robin's hand, out to encircle his friends...**or form a fist to crush his enemies!**"

At saying that, she lunged forward in a streak of midnight. Just as before, the scarred mage managed to evade at the last possible instant, feeling the cold surge of Ethernano that manifested from his foe's strike. Darting back and forth across the camp, the pair left sizable impressions of their deadly game of cat and mouse, with one aiming to kill for tagging the one that kept a hair's breadth away.

"These guys are too fast!" Max cried out, trying to fix his eyes at them, only to see that it was nigh impossible to predict their movements. "I feel so helpless."

"They're kicking up too much air for me to smell where they'll be," Wendy gasped, her head of blue hair swishing around as the crashes of Bobbie came dangerously close to hitting her in the process. "Ah!"

"Doranbolt, lure her away!" Arcadios ordered with a swing of his metal covered unarmed palm. "As long as you can keep them from having it, then they can't flee this country! Do what you can to ensure that it isn't returned to their possession!"

There was a moment of hesitation.

A thought ran through the teleporter's mind, rushing the image of his precious friend's companion in the form of the Exceed. She was desperate to come with, a prophecy spoke of a dark fate involving the Sky Maiden. Was she to die when he could have done something? Was she fated to disappear from this world?

"_I could use a friend right now. Can you help with that?_"

His eyes widened at that.

No, she was stronger than that. Wasn't she the one who fought off Brutalia, Eris and Runt when she was on the last dredges of her strength? She will not fall, not with her friend and ally at her side.

"I'll come back," Doranbolt cried out, a brief serious stare locking with Wendy as he passed her by. "You have my word."

With a brave smile on the deep blue haired girl's face, he'd zip away and the darkened figure that was Bobbie Blondes streaked across the night sky in perseverance after him.

A deathly quiet settled upon the camp as the majority of the thugs that were bested by the triage were unconscious or in some state of agony. What ones were still standing hesitated to come close, and some were determined to pretend to feign unconsciousness just so they wouldn't get beaten to a pulp.

This left, of course, the Frontline members of the gang to step up - if not all too eagerly - to the intruding attackers.

"I knew it was too good to be true to expect you would be still licking your wounds in bed," Brutalia intoned, fluttering her fan over her face as she walked towards them with the same air of superiority. No, not the same. Something changed in the woman, as the air swirled around her in a manner that befitted someone vexed in a physical way.

An almost audible sound came from a throbbing vein that emerged from the exposed forehead of a disheveled set of bangs of reddish-gold hair that was once well kept the last time they saw her. Her dress had tears, her face pale and dark circles were seen around her eyes from the lack of sleep. Veins stretched across the whites of her eyes and the lack of lipstick helped define the paleness of her teeth that were now bared.

"I'm going to repay you, little Slayer," The Princess of Pain snarled, collapsing her fan to divide her facial features, her skirt whipping about her dark stocking adorned legs as a crimson veil of her Magical Aura spiked up, enhancing her outline in a blackened silhouette of supernatural might harnessed from her indignant rage. "For every bit of humiliation I've endured because of you...you'll pay...for all of it!"

"You'll have to get in line, Brutalia," A deep hum came from the attractive but almost just as disheveled man that walked from the opposite end of the camp that she did. His breastplate had marks of mud, his head no longer combed but a messy mop and his eyes stared with a pair of pins for pupils towards them. His pronounced chin shook with his gritted teeth as he forced a smile, his own amethyst energies spewing into the air as either hand trembled at his sides. "_I want to rip them into pieces for what their friend did to my mind!_"

Their entry into the fray didn't surprise the Fairy Tail mages.

They had an impression that was hard to forget. Handsome's bloodlust and surprising durability made him a foe to be feared for all of the most obvious reasons. Meanwhile Brutalia's exceptional mastery over a magic like Telekinesis made her an even more dangerous foe.

But, their current demeanor spoke of a wound to their pride and a break in their composure. Though they were strong, that meant they weren't fighting at their best.

With a look between each other without words exchange they knew they had a chance of defeating them now.

"You two, stop that," Eris chided, her voice coming off as motherly as she floated over their heads, coated in a veil of blue light that permeated from the halo behind her pinkish hair. "This is no time to act independently. Let the leader decide how best to deal with these interlopers-"

"Do as you wish."

"-what?" Eris gasped, looking over with a look of surprise at the Generous Robin.

"You heard me," The cherub faced bandit spoke, placing his gloved hand through his bangs and scratching his silky cyan crown. "They've been raving for days and its been giving me a headache. If I put them in the corner any longer, they'll likely go full crazy."

"With all due respect, little bird," The elf turned, floating down to look at him from his right eye-to-eye. "They're not acting well. If they fight this way-"

"They're strong enough on their own. I have full confidence in their capabilities. Besides," He dismissed with a heavy sigh, placing his wand at his right stocking-covered hip, gesturing offhandedly with his free elbow-length gloved arm. "If I let them indulge maybe that'll cool their heads."

"Or make it worse..." Eris whispered, her ruby eyes looking over worriedly at Handsome and Brutalia as they gave annoyed glances over at her.

"I stand by my decision," Robin spoke. To emphasize his words he swished his stave around, materializing a solid block of ice that moulded itself into a crude approximate to a chair. Sitting down on it, he leaned his left cheek into an upraised knuckle, twisting his stave around with his right hand as he looked on with a visibly humored smile on his face, complementing the bright sky colored eyes. "Go crazy, you two. Just remember, try to make sure you don't kill them if it can be helped; we do need one to question if they have others on the way, if at all."

"Tsk!" Handsome clicked his tongue while Brutalia rolled her eyes. As if they'd let a golden opportunity to enact revenge slip their fingers at some pretense of mercy. There would be no half measures!

Arcadios raised his weapon in readiness, Max held his fists up and Wendy kept her legs spread with hands flat just inches from her skirt's hips. The tension in the air was palpable, cold sweat forming along the heroes' necks and scalps, contrasting the look of malicious smiles, contracted pupils and pulsing glows of magical energy of their deranged opponents.

Then, they moved.

Handsome's giraffe-like gait betrayed his speed, now galloping forth like a lightning swift horse. Twisting around, his arm from the shoulder down transformed in a flash of light, turning it into a Morning-Star. The interconnected chains made a cold clicking sound as he swung the spiked ball over his tall shoulders in an arc straight towards the back of the Lily Knight's head.

At the same time, Brutalia swung her fan outward, releasing a visible distortive wave of kinetic force by sheer will of her mind. Torn up earth was caught up, shooting outward at its head while barreling towards Max, aiming to bludgeon him with the energy she unleashed; aiming to tether him, much like she had done when she _brutalized_ Runt merely a week ago.

The two looked as if they were going to bulldoze through their adversaries with ease, and their sickening grins moments into executing their attacks showed how certain they were.

Singing metal swiping through the metal ball and several partitions of chains later, and Handsome found his face blanching. The Holy Squadron Chief maneuvered with succinct posturing and grace that he may have been wearing no armor at all, swinging his blade in just three strokes at a speed comparable - no, _superior_ \- to his own. With his balance lost, Arcadios lunged forward, slamming his armored shoulder into the dark mage's chest, sending him staggering backwards by several meters before rushing in for the counteroffensive.

At the exact same instance, Brutalia saw the cobalt haired girl leap up above Max, assuming a stance that mirrored the man's own. Swerving their arms about they thrust it forward, unleashing both wind and sand in conjunction of each other. What was an assumedly powerful wave of telekinetic force was countered and then shoved straight towards her in a twisting battering ram of air sped grains.

"**Sky Dragon's Sand Wave!**" They cried out in unison, watching as their magic made contact as Brutalia was seemingly consumed by the rushing two-prong attack.

"Holy Sword Art," Arcadios began to utter, already entering Handsome's proximity before he could reform his left arm; carving a series of figure eight strikes that tore through Handsome's suit-jacket and shattered his breastplate in a flash of blood. "Sanctified Eight Fold Strokes!"

Eris sighed and Robin looked on with intrigue.

As Brutalia emerged from the blast of sand, visibly disheveled and scraped from her skirt up to her blouse of her black and red dress, the several cuts lacing her cheeks did nothing to sober her. In fact, her fury seemed to reach a feverous pitch as she let out a snarling growl.

"You _dare_ touch me with your _filthy_ magic?!" She sneered, her hand crushing the fan she held into splinters. An angry crimson bled from her, coloring the air in a macabre overcast as she conjured slabs of earth from around her the size of human-sized boulders. "I'm going to pulverize you for that, you ingrates!"

"You need a serious reality check, lady," Max replied, visibly sweating with a nervous smile armed on his face. "Weren't you going to kill us slowly a few moments ago?"

"DON'T CORRECT ME, YOU BOWL HAIRED NEANDERTHAL!" Brutalia shrieked, hurling her boulders with a forward clap of her sullied dress sleeves.

At seeing this, the pair acted in accordance. The cobalt haired Sky Maiden ran up the side of Max's back and - with a boost of his arms - leaped gracefully into the air through several revolutions of her green skirted frame. In those rotations she gathered the enriched air of the Jade Mountains, coalescing it in a swathe of visibly teal wind. Drifting it up over her head she swung it down, sending a powerful gust of wind that slammed into the ground, exploding the boulders and creating a massive cloud of dirt to rise up into the air to obscure the three fighters.

While the Princess of Pain winced at her attack being nullified and her senses blinded she swore she heard running. A brush of her hands, she willed the dust away, just in time to see Max running straight towards her with surprising speed.

"Why you-!" Brutalia snarled, whipping her hand around to halt his approach.

The instant she thrust her palm towards face, two things occurred.

One, she felt the earth beneath her give way, as if it was no longer solid. Her heels sunk with a dry _slick _sound, and her aim diverted to upheaving the air just above the man's head.

The second that happened, was that she felt the whole of her body thrusting up into the air, held fast by a twisting cyclone of sand. An unintelligible cry was heard from her as she'd be brought up substantially into the sky of the forest filled valley of the mountains before summarily thrown down with a significant thuum; the shockwave sending a blistering wind that brought the Generous Robin's locks flourishing back along with Eris's.

"And that is what happens when you don't look at anything but ahead," Max chided, smiling at the sight of sand coating the campsite, a pair of heeled feet sticking upwards with slight twitching being noticeable. "A bit of Sand Wrapping around those boulders, and I flood Sandstorm into the broken up soil. Once I've filled it with sand, it was just a matter of getting close and hitting you with a point blank Sand Rebellion; thanks to Wendy, you didn't see me coming until the last second."

Landing softly beside him, the man turned with a broad smile and raised his hand. She met it with a high five, the two giggling despite their current situation.

"P-Pardon me."

A voice breached the pair's victory, making them look over at Arcadios as he was submerged in the sand with only his head sticking up; looking humorously like a brown bush of his wild hair on his angular face, sticking up from the ground. The two did their best to not snicker as he cleared his throat and asked with a visible sign of wincing humiliation.

"May you please unearth me? Your magic caught me in the crossfire..."

"Sorry about that, Sir Arcadios," Wendy meekly apologized, rushing up with Max casually walking behind her. Digging up the sand around him, the two hoisted him up by the undearms, and with a heave, they pulled him straight out of the dry grains of earth that now covered the battlefield.

"Uh, where's Handsome?" Max inquired, his head turning left and right trying to look for the man.

"I lost sight of him-"

Just as the Holy Squadron Chief was about to answer, a pair of feet slammed into the earth with a thunderous impact. As the sand kicked up around the silhouette, a lean, muscular figure rose up to full height and the aforementioned Dark Mage revealed himself in all of his glory. Despite the visible incisions carved into his flesh, the blood flowed slowly out and the man didn't look fazed. His crazed smile seemed a bit more composed, and his eyes stared at the three with more intrigue than outrage.

"I-It seems he jumped," Max remarked with a flabbergasted expression.

"He must have been high in the air for us to not notice," Arcadios remarked, grimacing with a visibly unnerved expression. "What kind of physical power does that man have?"

"Hmmmmmm, impressive," He hummed out, patting his bloodied chest and raising it up towards his face. "I thought I sensed something odd when you three emerged into our camp. I couldn't quite make out your magicks, as they seemed entwined with another, more potent one. And that pain brought me a sense of nostalgia...and now I remember," He raised his blood soaked hand, pulling back the sleeve towards a purple mark poised around his forearm. "You're the little girl, the Slayer, who attacked me out of thin air. You laced that knight with your magic and made him an actual threat to me. Without a substantial magical energy, I can't react in accordance to his strokes as I would against your teleporter friend...the one who took my memories of that night away. _What a clever little girl you are._"

Wendy tensed up. This man had started off being just as deranged as Brutalia, lashing out with malicious glee at the thought of bloodshed. But, strangely, he was now more composed... _I can see why Doranbolt was against me facing him. He's smart, and he can sense magical energy incredibly,_ She thought as she looked to Max and then to Arcadios, swiftly devising a means of changing her battle plans.

"I see I'll have no choice," The roguish dark mage proclaimed, placing a hand through his messied hair and sweeping it back to its original attractive backwards combed appearance. "I'll have to use my full power against you; be thankful you get to witness a true artisan in the field of death firsthand!"

"I won't let you-!" Arcadios shouted, leaping from his unsteady post with a swiftness that defied his size and weight. Thrusting his weapon, the light wrapped weapon aimed true, even as Handsome became engulfed in a brilliant illuminating mantle of light. Without deviating course he struck towards the heart where a wound once was just scant an inch deep.

_CLANG!_

"Full Body Takeover," Exhaled out the large chinned man, now revealed not as a man with ratted clothes and bloodied skin, but a gleaming form with a sheen of finely polished iron covering his whole body. Within the 'cuts' of his body had something resembling edges to a sword, where the defined physique was closer to its flat. Even the hairs on his head and his own eyes resembled a shapely reflection of a weapon forged for cutting. "If the scarred man hasn't told you before, my magic is Inanimate Soul. I once found a sword of unparalleled design and it was the first in my arsenal, and therefore, the one I've had the most skill in using. This is Inanimate Soul: Kusanagi; you cannot best me now I'm in this sta-"

"Holy Art..."

"NGH!"

"...SANCTIFIED SUNDER!" Arcadios howled out, twisting the blade and sliding it up while dragging the double-edged sword of his own wielding out of the notched etching that was Handsome's wound. To his own surprise he'd see a massive crack formed along his chest, spurting out blood, and webbing outward much to his bewilderment. As the Holy Squadron Chief held his weapon in two hands in a downward angled stance, he glared forward with a thin lipped sneer. "Do not mock me. You are no true swordsman. Even if the material was absorbed into your being, I am using the Jaded Blade, a weapon of impervious make forged out of the minerals within these very mountains you walk upon. And moreover, I am given the enchantment of a Dragon Slayer; the quality of your defense and offense are incomparable to mine!"

Stomping on the ground, Handsome let loose a malicious smile of his own.

"Interesting," He smiled ear to ear. "So you know sword arts. Are you perhaps one of the highest of tier swordsmen in the land?"

"I'm sure there are more skilled in swords than I," Arcadios replied honestly, though didn't break off his perpetual scowl. "But I am the best in this country, this much I am certain."

Handsome's eyes widened and a barking laugh was let loose from his throat.

"Good enough!" The Dark Mage bellowed, bending his legs and leaping forward with his arms resembling less arms and more a single-edged pair of katanas. Swinging the pair in a single stroke, Arcadios parried the limbs, stepping back and ducking underneath a follow-up swipe of his weapons. Kicking up, Handsome bent back, throwing out a eviscerating kick towards his armor, sending him booting back only for Wendy and Max to stabilize him with a wind propelled layer of sand to buffet him.

"Let's team up against this guy!" Max proffered.

"Yeah, he doesn't seem to care his wounded," Wendy noted, grimacing at the sight of blood spilling freely from the murderer's chest as he pursued Arcadios once he rose up to challenge his strikes.

"I concur," The Lily Knight replied, gritting his teeth as he met blow for blow the perceived slew of attacks his adversary was unleashing. "Let us bring down this savage and then leave this place!"

Drums. A cacophony of beats thrummed within the earth. The sensation rattled beneath their feet, pulsing visibly across the sandy ground that Max had created. Struggling to stand atop it, they all wobbled on their feet with Handsome even staggering to keep his massive physique stable.

Before they could utter inquiries what it was, Wendy smelled it; bloodlust. It rose up into the air ahead of a crimson devil sliding up from the tens of thousands of grains that was their floor. Shoving it away from a swirling vortex of scarlet light came up the whipping hair of the princess of pain herself. Grinding teeth together with a loud crackling sound, a pupiless pair of eyes glared as she levitated into the air, a storm of sand spiraling around her as she held her hands up in a clawed pair of gestures.

Clenching them into fists, the sand coalesced, the friction of pressure of her blood lit magic transforming it from one substance; and straight into glittering, sharpened gems that formed spears of diamonds that numbered up to a dozen evenly distributed on either side of her floating form.

"You...miserable...ants," Brutalia hissed aloud, throwing her fists outward in the shape of knives with her fingers, discharging the pressure-borne gems akin to missiles towards the three. "BECOME DUST!"

"Sky Dragon's Wave!" Wendy thrust her palm out, unleashing an arc of wind from her arm to derail the spiraling blades of crystals Brutalia had crafted. Grazing her cheek, left arm and side, the explosions they caused from impacting on the far side of the camp rattled her inside.

Following up, Max threw a fist out, unleashing a pillar of Sandstorm magic at the crazed telekinetic. Despite crashing into her body, the woman let out a scream that released a crimson wave of light that pushed it back. Throwing a punch, a visible fist of intangible energy discharged that he narrowly avoided; exploding the ground from the force of its momentum.

"You two, defend yourselves!" Arcadios declared, deflecting his Take-Over Mage's attacks. "We must buy Doranbolt time to get the nation's treasure to a place they can't reach!"

"Three-Fold Enchantment!" Wendy cried out, layering it over herself, Max and Arcadios as soon as he said it. They had neared the end of their uses of this invaluable increase to offense, defense and speed. It wasn't nearly as strong as it could be, which she admitted aloud while biting her lower lip. "I wish I could do a double layer, but I need to fight too; please, bear with it, Max! Sir Arcadios!"

"Don't worry about us, Wendy!" Max cried out, evading another series of visible telekinetic fists thrown out by Brutalia. "Just keep yourself together! We need you in one piece, alright?"

"Right!" Wendy shouted with a brave smile, leaping up throwing out arcing gusts of wind that forced Brutalia back, as Arcadios himself swung in fervor to counter his own maddening opponent's offensive strokes. "I promised Charle I'd come back - no matter what!"

* * *

An instant.

It was said to be the fastest thing known to man. One moment, something can occur and the next, it was over. The magic of teleportation was said to be unparalleled, its speed unquestioned and maneuverability second to none. So when Doranbolt vanished from the campsite, he expected there to be a delay. At least a minute, maybe more. But when he reappeared within the valley of the mountains a few days of walking apart from where he last was he couldn't help but feel his spine sweep with a chill, eyes widening-

-as Bobbie appeared, a sprout of a fiery shadow bursting into being, right in front of his person.

"You're not getting away from me," Bobbie sneered, blue eyes glowering at Doranbolt's turquoise orbs shaking in place as she began to take slow, bouncy steps towards him while still endowed with a tight wrapping of shadows over her voluptuous physique. "Not until you give back our blue bird's hat."

Doranbolt's eyes shifted left and right. It seemed like he had plenty of places his Direct Line could pinpoint. And yet, he had used a previous location he had already seen - another feature of his teleportation magic - that sent him right out of the way of harm for the others. But now, he wondered if there was some warping ability that Bobbie possessed he wasn't aware of.

"There's no escape!" She yelled out, crouching down and spiraling forward in a streak of black. Shifting through space in a vibrant shimmer she passed harmlessly through his Afterimage. Just as he appeared on the other side of the valley, he'd see her burst into being; like a black inferno that spontaneously combusted out of shadows, she reassembled and thrust a clawed hand towards him, wreathed in darkness.

Nimbly leaping away at the last possible second, he'd watch as her mere gesture carved into the earth and blew away rocky foundation. Twisting about, he threw a fist as she lunged towards him again, watching her faze through as she became an intangible flotsam of cold nothingness.

A whipping kick to his spine and his body bowed, his person slamming into the ground, somersaulting back to all fours as she turned to look over his shoulder. Thin blades manifested between her fingers, sent flying with a thrusting gesture of her arm, singing aloud its deadly tune to sink into his flesh. Grasping a rock at his feet, he shifted through space and avoided the blades that blasted through more rocky terrain.

With his hand clutching the hat in his left grip, he swung his knees towards her voluminous chest, only for her to dissipate just as before. Turning around, he teleported the instant she reappeared, slamming a rock straight across her face...tearing her mask off as it was reduced to powdery pebbles.

"For someone using _Assassin Requip_, you're surprisingly easy to read," Doranbolt commented, leaping back as Bobbie's now scraped face bared teeth and lunged back to send a flurry of shadowy bladed strikes from weapons formed out of magic from between her clenched knuckles. As he avoided her strikes deftly, he snapped a foot towards her face, watching her halt her stride and step away from his counterstrike. Frowning at this, he stopped and held himself in a straightened stance. "I stand corrected. You're not easy to fool as I thought."

"And you're not as single-minded as I anticipated," Bobbie admitted, raising a hand up to wipe away the dirt mixing with the blood oozing from the scrape across her swollen cheek. "You're also sharp, to realize the surface nature of my magic. Few have seen this magic, and even fewer have lived to tell the tale."

"I've worked with the Council, I know a lot of things," The teleporter answered honestly, eyes slanting as he looked up and down at her person. "Still, for you to possess teleportation on top of great speed is impressive. Few possess so many skills in a single Requip."

"If you are trying to probe me for information, you're wasting your breath," Bobbie clicked her tongue with annoyance. "The moment my eyes met yours, this battle has been forfeit. You cannot run to any place on this world that I cannot catch you."

Gesturing her hand to the side, the air began to crackle and the hairs on Doranbolt's skin stood on end. A flame of onyx formed from the palm of her covered hand, ejecting what looked like a pyre of something that slowly wrapped itself into a more solid shape. Once it began to create a cross-shaped handle, a single edge appeared out of the shadows, and the weapon itself was visible to the eye. With the light of the moon gleaming down he'd bear witness to an elegant wakizashi with a pentacle shaped guard, all retaining a burning darkness that permeated from its very make-up.

"With _Kagesen_, I'll tear you apart, teleporter," Bobbie proclaimed, swinging the blade around in a spinning flourish to ceremoniously divide her now visible visage. "Accept your defeat with dignity, less I take you apart. _One_. _Piece_. _At_. _A_. **Time!**"

Swinging her weapon, a mass of blackness sprouted from the razor edge, shooting into the air and flowing around all angles. Strings of darkness filled the scarred man's vision. Flourishing around in an unpredictable series of trajectories, her weapon's strokes belied the true nature of her magic; arcs of shadow creating a web of darkness that cut off the most obvious avenues of escape.

With Direct Line, he maneuvered behind her, turning about to swing a foot at her-

-only to see the webs of blackness erupt from the space behind her, warping away from the spot it once was sailing towards him a moment ago.

_Her magic is teleporting too?!_ He thought, backpedaling with another jolt of his magic to avoid the seeking snare of shadow. In doing so, he watched with his own eyes as the exact instant he did, the darkness spiraled out of place and back towards him, now even closer than it was before. Repeating this, he found himself in a maddening chase across the mountain valley, having lost sight of the Assassin Requip Mage.

Darting about, he'd eventually sense her presence behind him. A sharp thrust came into his shoulder, piercing his body and jabbing through his shoulder out his striped tunic on the other side. Even as he threw an elbow back at her in retaliation, she whisked away like smoke, leaving him to be heading straight first into the web of shadows; all that sunk into his clothing and slashed into his skin.

"Hngh!" He winced, one eye grimacing shut as blood spout from his sleeves up his jacket and across his chest.

"Let go!" Bobbie snarled, reappearing above and swinging her blade in a fiery line of eviscerating shadow. "_Or die!_"

Instead of avoiding the blow, Doranbolt looked up defiantly with his open eye and grasped the weapon around the pentacle-guard and over her hand. With Bobbie's eyes widened in surprise, she saw him pull with surprising strength and twist around the balls of his heels-

-teleporting straight into the base of a mountain where he'd slam her shadow enraptured body with a vicious crack!

"Gah!" Bobbie gasped out. With the wind knocked from her lungs, she found herself open for a follow-up as her enemy jettisoned the two of them across the valley vista, thrashing her through one boulder and then another. Each time Bobbie sensed pain radiate from her body as his persistent contact made it impossible for her to transmute into darkness.

And then, after the seventh impact, she unleashed a bodily pulse of darkness from her whole being.

"Enough!" She shouted, forcing him to skid backwards, his dominant arm raised to protect his face while his blood covered left arm held the pointed hat of the Generous Robin still firmly in his grasp.

Both took time to regain their breaths, eyeing each other as blood and bruises marred their persons.

"This isn't usually my style," The scarred man admitted, breaking the pause in the air between them. "I'm normally not the kind of man to fight with my all. Only when I find a significant criminal in my sights, or when there's no other choice, do I ever engage in combat."

"Then why don't you surrender already?" Bobbie inquired, her eyes blinking with confusion.

"Every fiber of my being is telling me to complete my objective. To run and bring this hat back to Crocus. But," Doranbolt grabs the hem of the cloth and opened his mouth wide, stuffing it till it was nothing but a ball of enchanted fabric. Sweating profusely, eyes watering, Bobbie watch aghast as the whole magical hat into his throat and down as a lump straight out of sight into his gullet. Gasping, and choking back an urge to vomit, Doranbolt smiled grimly as he raised up both of his hands and smacked one fist into an open palm. "_You've forced me into a corner; be prepared for a real fight with a mage of Fairy Tail!_"

The sight of the hat being fully ingested brought about a look of pure, unadulterated rage on Bobbie's face. Veins throbbed across her brow and down her scraped face, teeth gnashed and the whole of her voluptuous and partially exposed person undulated with a revolution of blackness emitting from her Requip.

"You'll..._pay_ for that!" She howled, leaping forward with her blade brandished in a slashing arc poised towards his face.

_Direct Line, _Doranbolt thought, his eyes widening as he timed for the exact instant her blade was about to touch his skin. Instead of maneuvering to a flank, or behind her, he throttled forward and slammed his forehead straight into hers. The unorthodox blow split her forehead open, bruising his own sturdy cranium.

Taking advantage of her unsteady disposition, he zigzagged around her, throwing punches that all coincided in concert around her form. One hit her in the ribs, another struck the base of her neck and the third dug into her scraped jawline.

Grimacing at this, she dissolved into shadow at the end of the triage of attacks, ending his combo. Just as she 'ported below him, she'd see five shimmering replicas of Doranbolt all throwing punches down towards her face; lunging away at the last second, a visible explosion of earth being expunged by the force of five full-powered straight jabs shocked her.

In the span of her watching it, she'd see him reappear in front of her, eyes glaring straight into her orbs.

Baring her teeth, she swung Kagesen in a swift arc, only for him to duck beneath its cutting stroke of midnight onyx flame. A swift upward teleport brought his knee crashing into her face, halting her sword stroke and rattling her skull with the additional momentum of instantaneous movement.

"Your _Mystic Eye Curse_ is a pale imitation of true teleportation," He intoned, twisting around to slam the shin of his right leg into the side of her head, sending her spiraling away; just in time for him to land a forward jab as he shifted in front of her flying frame, his knuckles grinding into her flinging body and sending her painfully thrust back the way she was sent flying off her feet. "You can only teleport when you're not attacking, and it takes concentration on top of it. You can make yourself intangible, and even latch your offensive spells onto me when I retreat; its a true assassin's magic...not meant to for a brawl with someone of a high caliber in speed and reflexes."

"So what of it?!" Bobbie lashed out, twisting her body around and clawed at the earth before catapulting herself straight at him with a harry of vicious strikes, coated in shadow magic. Each time she aimed he deftly wove himself around, not even teleporting as her strikes couldn't sink into him like they once did. "As long as I draw breath, I'll keep coming! You're already wounded, and that enchantment won't last long enough for you to finish the job!"

"On that we can agree," Doranbolt replied, backhanding her blade's thrust by its flat, before he grasped her arm and looked straight upward to the moonlit sky. "Its time we end this farce."

A shunt of space was made, and the two were no longer within the valley.

High above in the sky two dots formed. Upon closer view, one could see Doranbolt and Bobbie were now high in the sky, tens of thousands of feet in altitude above where the Jade Mountains was viewed.

Bobbie's already heavy breathing soon turned into gasps - not just from the change in scenery - as the oxygen surrounding her immediate perspective was drained to near zero.

"No-!" She croaked out, swinging her blade towards the scarred man only to find him teleporting along her flank while throttling a punch straight into her diaphragm. The high-velocity impact brought what air was within her lungs, and she found darkness creeping into her eyes of the metaphorical kind. Reaching a hand out, she desperately tried to claw at him, only to find gravity and the lack of air surrounding her, brought her to an immediate state of unconsciousness.

In a swift return to the earth below, Doranbolt gasped for his own breath, dropping to his hands and knees.

"Gah...wah...too...too high...never doing that again!" He exclaimed, beading sweat dripping onto the ground as the light of enchantment fizzled out from his form.

Pushing himself back to his feet, he cast a wary glance at the unconscious Bobbie, grimacing as he took stock of how narrow this win truly was.

"Under normal circumstances, you probably would've aimed to kill rather than incapacitate. If it wasn't for the hat, I probably would've been dead...but this time," He admitted, grinning despite himself as he looked into the horizon, raising his fist into the air as he yelled loudly. "VICTORY IS MINE!"

* * *

**A/N:  
Demod20: **This was a thrilling chapter to write. Not only because we got to see a proper rematch, in part, with Brutalia and Handsome, but we got to see _Arcadios_ in action. The man is quickly becoming a favorite of mine in the way we've depicted him thus far. Even with enchantment, I wanted to invoke real kickassery with this man's implementation of "Badass Normal". And Max teaming up with Wendy was very satisfying; to add the cherry on top, Doranbolt gets to finish a fight, and with Bobbie Blondes of all people. As someone who's watched Naruto and Mob Psycho 100, I had quite a bit of inspiration in the dynamics of how teleporters fight. Given from what I've seen and what I theorize, _distance_ isn't the limitation of Direct Line but _repetition__is; the more times you use it, the more it drains your magical energy. I think that's a fair exchange, since Doranbolt has never been portrayed in Canon as being worn out from long distance teleporting. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and my co-author's first half of set-up being pretty awesome in its own right. See you all in the next eventual upload! ^^  
_  
**LastationLover5000: **_Now I had a lot of fun with this chapter. Due to my burn-out with battle chapters, I've been trying to write some of the set-ups to our chapters more. My general inexperience with that though, has led to me trying a lot harder to get these sections down. And this was the first time I felt I really succeeded. I felt bad shelving the larger portion of the chapter onto my counterpart, but he did a FANTASTIC job writing it, and I am very glad with how it turned out. I'll be looking forward to seeing you all in the next chapter: we've got much more to come! Also, to anyone curious, the title, "Onigokko", comes from the word __おにごっこ __onigokko, which means 'catch the demon', referring to the Japanese name for the game of tag._


	9. The Sorcerous Bloodline

**Chapter 9 - The Sorcerous Bloodline**  
**Written by LastationLover5000 and Demod20**

**Mercurius Castle**

_Piercing, raging waves. A liquid spiral, piercing the body of a young girl. The girl's body rode the current of the spiraling drill, her blood tainting the waters red._

_Before the eyes of someone who struggled to comprehend what was happening, Wendy Marvell's body collapsed in a heap, lifeless and growing still._

_The sound of ragged breathing, shouts and screams, filled Charle's ears as she woke with a start._

"That premonition again..." Charle shuddered in horror. "Only...there was more this time..." Worried, the Exceed turned her head to the outside window, taking in the light of the moon.

_Wendy...what's happening?_

* * *

**Jade Mountains, Robin Hoodlums Encampment**

Robin, sitting firmly on his frozen throne, observed the ongoing battle of his underlings against the Fairy Tail guild with an air of bemusement. He didn't despise his underlings, but if he was a mother, Brutalia and Handsome would be his least favourite children. Robin considered this their punishment; if they lost, it was entirely on them, and if they won, well, he'd have something to help him sleep pleasantly again.

"My little bird," Eris began, "shouldn't we be worried for Bobbie? She hasn't come back with your hat."

The young mage waved a gloved hand airily. "There's no reason to be worried, Eris," replied Robin confidently. "Bobbie's reputation speaks for itself; I count on both you and her more than anyone else in this group. If Bobbie fails, then we're going to have to reconsider everything." He gripped the arm of his throne, and the ice began to crack, shattering under a surprising amount of pressure from arms so lacking in musculature. _She can't fail me._

Back on the battlefield, Wendy and Arcadios were being being pushed back by Handsome, whose Full-Body Take-Over was proving to be formidable. The duo weren't significantly wounded, but they were barely able to hold them back — Wendy's enchantments were failing. On the other side, Max was cleverly utilising sand to keep Brutalia at bay, yet it was obvious he too was on the defensive; they were stalling for time, and the trio needed more of it.

"You can't keep this up forever, you bowl-cut bastard!" snarled Brutalia, aiming an invisible blast of telekinetic force which collided with a dense Sand Wall of Max's. "You're going to run out of steam! And when you do, I'll make sure you suffer when you die!"

"You're a really picky woman!" snapped Max. "And I wish you'd make up your mind about how you're going to do me in! Is this why you're single?!"

"Low-bred vermin!" roared the black-and-red clad woman.

"Don't let up, Lady Wendy," urged Arcadios, parrying a blade-armed strike from an incoming Handsome. He used his armoured body to stand in front of Wendy, a knight in shining armour for a young maiden. Steel clashed with steel, and sparks flew as the blades of the two crashed. Arcadios' sword screeched against the sharpened, tempered body of Handsome — in truth, structured far better than any man-made blade could match — but Wendy's fading enchantments carried over to Arcadios' weapons, and the man held true.

"T-Thank you, Sir Arcadios," Wendy cried out, using Arcadios' distraction to gain some distance and devour the fresh air of the Jade Mountains. She held onto the hope that Doranbolt would come back to her; he had promised, and he wouldn't betray a promise. She merely needed to buy more time. Wendy coated her arms in wind, preparing to aid Arcadios another strike against Handsome—

—when an exhausted, battle-worn Doranbolt whisked into the middle of the battlefield.

Everything fell silent.

The battle stopped.

Wendy, Arcadios, Max, Brutalia, and Handsome turned to look at Doranbolt, their expressions mixed.

"Doranbolt!"

"You're back!"

"He's back?!"

"How?!"

Multiple voices, mixed reactions and tones, sounded off at once. Doranbolt only heard one — Wendy — and relief flooded him to see that the girl was alive. Yet he did not go to check further, as he wanted; he could sense a sudden rush of bloodlust and seething hatred emanating to his right. Doranbolt didn't need to look to know who it was; the young Generous Robin, sitting on his ice-hewn throne, fixed the Fairy Tail Mage with a stare far more frigid than his seat.

When he spoke, it was three simple words.

"Where is Bobbie?"

"You had high expectations for her," Doranbolt replied. "I took her higher than you might've bargained for."

"...and my hat?"

Doranbolt flinched. This sentence, while not as cold as the previous, was laced with venom. "Gone." He held up his empty hands. "I've already taken it back to Crocus — you know my magic is teleportation. It's hardly difficult." Slowly, Doranbolt began to back himself towards Wendy and the group. Still no one moved; all eyes were fixed upon the Generous Robin, who seemed to have frozen everyone solid with the fury he was exuding.

"I see..." The seat beneath Robin's firm legs cracked from the pressure he began emitting; more than rage this time, a flowing, cobalt aura of pure magical power gushed form. The chair shattered in its entirety, and Robin, in spite of his fury, landing gracefully on his heeled boots. The face he gave one of Doranbolt was livid. "I hold myself to very few rules, my dear former Magic Council member. And one of them I consider the most important of all. It appears I will need to break it now."

"A rule?" inquired Doranbolt curiously. "What rule is that?"

"_Avoiding needless slaughter!_" snarled Robin. He raised his staff high above his head, his aura moving with it, beginning to focus it solely at the tip of the rod. The temperature in the air dropped considerably, traces of water beginning to glint and turn to frost. Breath became visible and white in the air.

"Get down!" Eris ordered to Handsome and Brutalia, who needed no telling twice. The battles were happening close enough that, when Robin struck, the two would be struck down along with Wendy and Max. Handsome and Brutalia took cover, distance with their respective magics, leaving Wendy, Max and Arcadios alone.

"Wendy! Max! To me!" Doranbolt ordered, feeling the wind shift, becoming even more frigid. Above Robin's staff, a massive, diamond-shaped construct, entirely made of ice, formed. They recognised it immediately; it was the same icicle spear that Robin had easily blown the gate of the vault open with. Even as they ran, there was still enough distance between Max, Wendy, and Doranbolt which Robin could take advantage of.

_Shit! I can't wait for them!_ Doranbolt focused on Wendy first, his body moving even as he thought the name of his spell. _Direct Line _took him to her in seconds, and Doranbolt scooped her up with a single arm. He held out a hand for Max, who grabbed it firmly, the bowl-haired man placing all of his trust in the person he'd formerly considered untrustworthy. Arcadios, with no hand to reach for, quickly placed an armoured limb on Doranbolt's shoulder.

All three were firmly holding onto Doranbolt now.

"You wont get way!" snarled Robin, his voice monstrous. With a gesture, the gargantuan ice spike began to spiral, drilling through air, shrieking towards the trio.

Doranbolt looked Robin dead in the eye, the split second of a glare the two shared conveyed multiple emotions — loathing, contempt, rage, desperation — before he focused entirely on where they were headed.

_Direct Line!_

In that instant, the ice spear crashed where Fairy Tail had been, yet Doranbolt had vanished from Robin's sight.

Silence followed. Robin stared blankly at the space where his attack had only barely missed. The ice spear emitting a soft frost, and yet it bore no blood. No gore splattered the ground. He knew he had failed.

With only his soldiers and followers to hear, the young man let out a blood curdling howl of rage, echoing throughout the Jade Mountains. It continued, beyond the lung capacity of any human.

It sounded like a raging beast.

* * *

**Crocus, Mercurius Castle Courtyard**

Fresh air.

Wendy, Max, and Arcadios, all not adjusted to the teleportation that Doranbolt prided himself on, gasped lungfuls of fresh, cool air of the Mercurius Castle Courtyard the instant they flickered into its confines. Doranbolt's hand slipped from Max's, allowing the bowl-cut man to wobble to his knees. Arcadios, made of sterner stuff than the lot of them, put on a brave face as he forced his scuffed-armoured form to his feet, without protesting in the slightest.

"Doranbolt..." Wendy's muffled voice came from Doranbolt's body; he had clutched her quite tightly. "You're still holding onto me...and I can't breathe..."

"Oh, I'm sorry...!" Doranbolt gasped, lettiing Wendy go as quickly as she pointed it out. The girl, pink in the face from the lack of air, was able to take in Doranbolt's appearance for the first time since he'd arrived. The man was cut in various places, his clothes flecked with blood — his own, Wendy could smell it — yet the most horrific would he possessed was a gaping hole in one of his shoulders. The fact that Doranbolt was even moving could be attributed to a combination of adrenaline and her incantations, both of which were running short.

"It appears we've made it back to Mercurius Castle in one piece," surmised Arcadios. "Sir Doranbolt, your skills continue to impress, truly."

"Don't...mention it..." Doranbolt replied, sounding thoroughly worn.

"But where is the hat?" asked Max. "We went through all that trouble to get it, and we managed to escape. You said it's here now?"

Doranbolt shook his head. "Yeah, about that..." He grinned slyly, and explained to his comrades what he'd done to throw Bobbie off during their battle in the Jade Mountains.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Doranbolt, you didn't..."

"He did..."

Arcadios, Max, and Wendy all wore similarly shocked or exasperated expressions. However they'd expected Doranbolt to have kept the hat out of harm's way, devouring it wasn't even on their list. Which begged the question on everyone's mind: how did Doranbolt plan to retrieve the hat from his gullet? The answer was as predictable as it was disgusting. Turning away from everyone, Doranbolt emitted a horrible wretching sound. After two minutes of convulsing, shuddering, and making sounds so horrible that the few castle guards that had survived Handsome's assault and recovered were rushing over, concerned, only to immediately flee.

Doranbolt lay, shuddering on the ground, next a hat, sopping wet from various stomach fluids and mucus.

"...If you will allow me," volunteered Arcadios, gingerly picking the hat up with an armoured hand. "I shall...deliver this to our Advisors, who will figure out precisely what to...do with it."

"I'll come along," offered Max. He began to create a whirling sphere of sand around the hat, levitating it from Arcadios' hand and using the whirling winds to begin the drying process. "We can get all of this stuff off of it. Wendy, can you...uh...help Doranbolt?"

"Y-Yes!" nodded the girl, who hadn't taken a concerned eye off of the man and was already kneeling at his side, preparing her Dragon Slayer Magic. "We'll meet you in the castle!" Gently, the young Slayer began to scoop the air from the surrounding castle-yard — not as delicious or pure as the air of the Jade Mountains, but there were still faint traces of magic that Wendy should draw on — and pooled it into her hands. They emitted a green glow, which Wendy placed over Doranbolt's stomach.

"Does your tummy hurt?" Wendy asked kindly, applying her magic as delicately as she could.

"I'll...never eat again..." Doranbolt shuddered.

Silence followed, Wendy focusing on the slow and methodical healing process. She could tell there was no internal damage to his stomach, and as soon as the young woman was sure the discomfort was gone, she moved onto his more serious wounds. The healing magic ran over the hole in Doranbolt's shoulder, beginning to stitch it up with the medicinal properties of Sky Dragon Slayer Magic. "Doranbolt..."

"Hm?" The Fairy Tail mage casually looked at Wendy, his queasiness gone. The pain from his wounds, which had begun to set fire to his body as the Enchantments wore off, was beginning to deaden itself again, Wendy's spectacular magic taking away the pain as it began the restoration process.

"I'm so happy...I'm so happy that you came back alive..." Her words, however, contradicted her face, which was on the verge of tears for what had to be the fiftieth time in a month. Swimming eyes looked upwards at Doranbolt, who was taken aback by the sudden surge of tears while he was wounded. "Don't put yourself through this much again...I don't want to be responsible for killing you..."

"Wendy, I—" Doranbolt tried to explain himself, but Wendy shook her head.

"You promised to be my friend...and I take care of my friends..." Her voice quavered. "So...take care of yourself for me too, please? Look after yourself, and I'll do the rest...just don't risk yourself needlessly like this again."

Her words shook him. While he had been prepared to be her friend from the start — to look after her, to make sure she could cope with the loss of her friends he felt entirely responsible for being the reason she'd even been exposed to it — he was going to take it entirely on himself. He was supposed to be her _friend_, not her _bodyguard_. Doranbolt smiled gently, a trait which complimented his youthful, if scarred, face.

"You're right. I shouldn't cause my friend to worry like this," replied the former Rune Knight. "I'll protect myself better from now on. You don't need to worry about that, Wendy."

"Thank you..." was all Wendy said, continuing to apply her magic towards Doranbolt's wounds. _I'm glad I asked Charle to stay behind_, Wendy thought to herself. _Doranbolt is the most skilled out of all of us, and if he got hurt this badly, it could have been worse for Charle..._ Wendy couldn't bear to lose anyone else now.

But she also knew that, if she became stronger, she could fix that. Internally, however, the Dragon Slayer Magic resolved to do better; her Enchantments hadn't been strong enough if they'd allowed Doranbolt to get hurt. If Doranbolt could vow to not ever get hurt again, then Wendy would vow to make _certain_ no one else ever did either. With renewed determination, Wendy set to work finishing Doranbolt's treatment.

* * *

**Mercurius Castle, Advisory Sanctum**

Wendy, Max, Doranbolt, Arcadios, Hisui, were gathered around a splendid table, upon which held the Generous Robin's now dried and clean hat. The teal hat, nearly identical to the mage's hair colour, with its only excess decoration being a black belt above the rim, adorned with a golden buckle. The group was joined by elderly men, wearing emerald-coloured hooded cloaks, which flowed past their barely-visible shoes. It was a very strange crew, yet they stood with purpose.

Within this magical hat stood the fate of Fairy Tail's reputation and Fiore's economic stability.

Arcadios remained standing, adjacent to his lord. The hooded figures mirrored him on the other side of Hisui. Hisui was the last to sit — which would have been considered incredibly rude, had she not instructed the others to seat before she did — and there was an air of silence, the entire group focusing on the hat. It was disturbed briefly by the sounds of drinking, as Hisui had decided hat a warm cup of tea for everyone would be best after nearly getting themselves killed. Hisui's gentle smile broke the silence.

"Fairy Tail, you've done splendidly," said Hisui heartily. "Truly, I don't think we could have reclaimed this hat without your efforts. But the true credit goes to you, Miss Wendy, for your fantastic plan. You pulled it off with aplomb, and because of that, the mission succeeded!"

Wendy blushed crimson, shaking her head into her cup. "It...it wasn't just me, Your Highness. Everyone else contributed, and if Sir Arcadios hadn't been there in command, I feel like we wouldn't have been able to pull it off at all. It was a joint effort!"

"You're a humble girl, Wendy, and for that, I admire you," replied Hisui. "I assure you, regardless of your nature, Fairy Tail will be rewarded handsomely for your efforts, as per our original agreement!"

"If I may," suggested Arcadios, leaning in to whisper something directly into the Princess' ear. Whatever it was, he clearly wanted to keep it a secret from the others.

"Ah!' Hisui clapped hr hands together enthusiastically. "Arcadios, that's a brilliant suggestion! As soon as this fiasco is completely resolved, please see to it at once."

"Regardless, we should see to the matter at hand," suggest Doranbolt, who glared at the hat with a level of distaste from across the table. It was foolish to hold grudges against inanimate objects, but the things Doranbolt had done to his stomach to retrieve this hat made the young man feel the beginnings of intense dislike.

"Of course," Hisui replied, adopting a more formal air near immediately. It was clear that, as easily excitable as the young woman became around Fairy Tail, she was more than capable of doing her job at the same time. "While it is a shame we were unable to capture the Robin Hoodlums outright, the recovery of this hat, which contains the stolen treasures of our kingdom, is more than an acceptable result." The green-haired woman then addressed the emerald-cloaked figures.

"Have you discovered anything about this article?" she inquired, her tone crisp and firm. "Affirmation of its contents? How to access the interior?"

"With all due respect, Your Grace," the tallest of the Advisors replied, bowing humbly first. "A preliminary analysis of this hat indicates that the stolen riches of the Treasury are indeed located within. However..."

"...there is a slight caveat, my Lady," added the second, shorter of the Advisors. "This magic tool is no mere layman's trinket. It is a storage unit of impeccable quality, and it shows signs of being crafted by the Lazuli family. True to their secretive nature, only those of the Lazuli blood can properly use this hat — we cannot force it to reveal its secrets, much less part with a single coin."

"The..."

"...Lazuli family?!"

The name of the family instilled a reaction in everyone in the room; everyone but little Wendy, who looked at each face with visible confusion on her's. A buzz filled the room, quickly silenced by the raising of Hisui's hand, yet the atmosphere remained astonished all the same. Doranbolt spoke first.

"The _Lazuli_ family?" He inquired again.

"Even I've heard the name," added Max. "Though I've never been too curious as to what they do."

"Who are the Lazuli family?" Wendy asked, not wanting to be rude by butting in but growing more curious. She had no idea who they were, though she assumed this came from her sheltered life before meeting and joining the Fairy Tail guild.

"The Lazuli family," supplied Doranbolt. "They're considered the foremost developers artisans in the field of crafting magical tools, and their name is known throughout the Pergrande Kingdom. I know them by reputation, as well as documents stored within the Magic Council, detailing official dealings with the family. They're high enough up on the totem pole of society that the magical government itself considers them vital to our infrastructure, though I haven't a clue what the Council needed them for."

"But if this hat is a Lazuli magical item..." Arcadios thoughtfully placed a hand towards his chin. "Then the young lass—no lad—who wields it must be of the Lazuli family's blood. That's the only explanation. But why would a member of such a distinguished lot be running around as the leader of a brigand outfit?"

"The Lazuli family is a secretive clan," said Hisui. "Only the patriarch every shows his face to the public; we know he has children and took a wife, but we've never seen his family. So this boy is a renegade Lazuli...he must have had an interesting history."

"This changes the mission entirely," Doranbolt said grimly. "We thought we were clever, having won that little game of capture the flag. But the Generous Robin outwitted us. If only a Lazuli can activate this hat..."

"...then our priority is capturing him," finished Hisui, almost as if to make it an official order. "It troubles me to send you out so soon after your mission, but capturing the Generous Robin should be our priority. I only ask you that rest before you head out again, and otherwise prepare yourselves for the mission to capture him alive and bring him to me."

Fairy Tail nodded their assent, and the audience was dismissed.

* * *

**Mercurius Castle, Hospital Wing**

Wendy eased herself into a wooden chair next to Charle's bed. The Exceed, due to be released tomorrow, was sleeping soundly. Wendy knew that she herself should be sleeping too — they had returned to the castle in the dead of night, and Hisui had run out to greet them in her bedclothes, which had been amusing — as it was nearly morning. But Wendy's brain was working actively now. Her plan had been brilliant, but the Generous Robin had been one step ahead of her.

_We're going to have to fight him again... _Wendy gently rested a hand on Charle's sleeping form, feeling the slow moving of her torso as she breathed in and out. _Not simply to play capture the flag...we have to capture _him _now... _She knew she'd need to be at the absolute top of her game. And Charle could get mixed up in it; Wendy's leverage last time had been that the Exceed was hospitalised, and freshly awoken. Now, she could be there...and Wendy could keep her safe.

_The Robin Hoodlums won't hurt my friends anymore_, Wendy decided firmly. _I'll protect them all!_

* * *

**Jade Mountains, Hoodlums' Campsite**

Defeat.

It was a complete reversal of what happened the last time they faced these ragtag - barely even a squad strong - mages. Where they had completely destroyed opposition, even with the surprise of having a Dragon Slayer as an adversary, they made out with their prize with not a single member of theirs arrested.

But here, amidst a now overcast mountain vista, the thieves had tasted a true loss. Bobbie Blondes had suffered enough injury to herself that Eris prescribed plenty of rest after she submitted the proper healing to her more severe wounds. Meanwhile Handsome was given basic first aid though he felt remiss about a fight left only half finished. Brutalia, on the other hand was given a modicum of healing while she silently stewed, surprising none that she cast glares to anyone that dared look her in the eye.

In part, the Generous Robin felt a large part of the guilt lying on him. Not that he spared them only for them to return and make off with months of hard work and planning. No, he had no regret of sparing lives when he was in a position to do so. What he truly regretted was the visible division that came to his troupe. Once he had commanded a united if not motley crew of cutthroats, outcasts and miscreants into a force that made off with a plentiful bounty that no kingdom could stop.

Now he could barely get Runt and Mirror to leave their safe part of the encampment to be within throttling distance of Brutalia or cutting range of Handsome. But, even still, the teamwork he had commended his frontline trio or the skill of his lieutenant was outstandingly outdone by the united front cast in no small part to the Holy Swordsman. Despite having not an actual ounce of magic in his body, his sheer skill and physical ability made him a fearsome enough foe to hold off Handsome, their physically most imposing fighter if not most skilled; Runt wouldn't have even made a difference, despite her unorthodox magic that enhanced her.

Hours later, as the time of night began to change into the early morning, Bobbie was found and returned back to camp. She was injured, unconscious and unfit to be of use to track down the missing bauble of the Generous Robin's.

This left him alone, to pace about with a pensive expression that hid the brooding he was undoubtedly permeating.

Eris then approached, watching him sway back and forth as his heeled feet clacked against the soft soil with a stern repetition.

"Little bird?" She inquired airily, her pointed eared visage looking worried as he didn't meet her gaze like he normally did when spoken of his moniker.

Again, she tried, "Robin?"

"Now's really not a good time, Eris," The Hoodlum Leader retorted brusquely beneath his breath.

"But you have to listen," Eris turned her head as she spoke in a hushed whisper. "Handsome and Brutalia are quiet. Too quiet. Even the men are showing acute signs of restlessness despite no audible protest. We may have a problem if we allow this to escalate-"

"I can hardly believe anything can possibly get worse than it already has," He retorted with a snort.

A melodic 'ahem' interrupted whatever retort the elf would've poised to her superior, making her turn to look while Robin continued to pace. There, standing with a more or less seamless repair on her dress - undoubtedly thanks to a finesse use of her Telekinesis Magic - was Brutalia. With a fan in hand, she had one sleeved hand rest on her sumptuous hip as her hoop-skirted form stood firm in the face of the only two authority figures of the gang.

"Beg your pardon for interrupting whatever passes as idle fancy your kind have," The coral haired woman sang too sweetly with ruby lips spread ear to ear, her eyes flashing dangerously over to the troupe's boss. "But, as I understand it, the thing that was stolen from us contained _all _of our spoils from the past year of pilfering from all those countries so far?"

Eris was afraid of this.

"Yes, it was," Robin replied, now looking over his shoulder with a blank stare poised at the woman. "But it's not like they can use it. Its a magical tool _I _made. Without obtaining me, or having my blood, they'd never be able to unlock the vault buried inside. The real problem is reacquiring it back."

"We've stormed the fortress before, but now we have lost our element of surprise," Eris affirmed with pursed lips, her pink eyes blinking back and forth between the pair. "Even if we manage to martial up a counteroffensive, it is likely we'd truly attract more attention than we've bargained for. Last time we checked, Council affiliates are investigating Crocus; if we show up there again, the Rune Knights will not be far behind us."

"So you're saying that all is lost, hm?" Brutalia inquired with a raised brow. "That all of the thankless work you've put us through has been whisked away due to your careless mercy? Did you not have the chance to end things? Why are you so insistent on holding back?"

"I have few rules, Brutalia," The Generous Robin replied, turning his head to look away from the two as he gripped the top of his sleeved arms with both gloved palms, tight enough to turn them white. "I am no bandit. I am a hero of the people. Once we regain what was lost, we will-"

"Do what? Start a new country with the funds you've obtained, and invite all of the poor and misfortunate into it?"

There was a noticeable pause in the air at that. Eris herself looked surprise that the effeminate man had nothing to say about it, the youth being thin lipped with eyes widening at that. With her own pointed ears rising upward, the pink haired elf turned to look at the malicious spreading grin on Brutalia, twisting on her heel and swishing the hem of her dress as she raised her voice to those within the immediate surroundings.

"Attention everyone! The Generous Robin's hidden plan, of which I've garnered the knowledge of through my most restless nights with this raucous gang, is not one of riches and rewards as he had heralded! No, it is in fact a silly dream of utopia; a lie to coral beggars, urchins, widows and miscreants to all be corralled like sheep for him to Shepard with him holding the riches in the palm of his hand. There to be hailed as the King of the Weak, your _Generous Robin _is all but the most efficient con artist of all time!"

"What the Hell...?" Runt questioned, coming out of the crowd with Mirror trailing behind her not far away. The shorter blonde woman looked around at the murmuring crowd of thieves and scoundrels, seeing their expressions shift from one of confusion to one of anger and vitriol. Looking over at the Generous Robin, she could see his face covered by bangs, his long locks of hair swaying over his slender back as he turned to face them all. Raising her hands up, Runt exclaimed aloud. "Robin! When were you planning on telling us?! Why did we have to have it sprung from _Brutalia_ of all people?!"

"It's not like you weren't going to be paid for your work..." Robin trailed off, his eyes sideglancing away, not wanting to look at the small woman in the eyes.

"HA!" Handsome bellowed, his laughter raucous as his stilt-like stride brought him into the fore of the rest of the crowd of the Hoodlums. "To think I thought you small minded. You were a clever bastard all along. But, you made a mistake...to pull a fast one on the likes of me."

"Children! Have you all lost your mind?!" Eris exclaimed, her body becoming engulfed in a bluish light that formed a halo behind her head. Clasping her hands together, she emulated with her words as her pink eyes stared them down with a warning. "If you don't settle down, I'll have to-"

Before she could finish speaking her piece, Brutalia gestured her hand from her hip straight towards Runt. A tether of invisible energy surged out, twisting and grasping something. For a moment Runt winced and raised her arms defensively; only to hear Mirror gasp behind her, and something speed over her head straight into the grasp of the crimson-black dressed mage. Her eyes widened palpably, eyes shrinking and her mouth agape.

"No!" Mirror squeaked out impotently, the wiry thin man exclaiming in a louder than usual tone for his meek personage. "H-How did you-?!"

"Were you so naive that I never noticed this?" Brutalia inquired with a tutting of her tongue against her teeth. Raising up what looked like a voodoo doll, made out of a brown sack-like material with mismatched buttons for eyes and stitches for its mouth it had a single strand of hair stuck into the top of its ovular shaped head. Plucking it out, she tossed the golden tress aside, yanking a thread of gold from her own luscious yellow locks to be placed within its crown. "I know much about the world of magic before I set out for guild work. And this Curse Magic is quite effective to turn such a weak midget like you into a force of nature. With the fine tuning of changing its nature with the right catalyst of magic..._and one can increase its potential immensely!"_

As she said this, her virulent red aura became a vibrant mantle of crimson that overlapped all of her features. Like an extra plate of pure energy, she permeated energy that swirled around in a maelstrom of force that kicked up earth and air alike around her.

Glancing at Eris, paralyzed at the sight, Robin looked on with an almost dull look on his face. Withdrawing his stave he began to saunter forward, his hips forming a confident swagger all the while his hair whipped back along with his robes against the sheer output of Ethernano she was projecting at the moment.

"Conniving. Truly cunning of you, Brutalia," The Generous Robin stated softly, his breath coming out as wisps of frozen moisture as the air around him chilled significantly. The air that the Telekinetic was whipping up also began to freeze over, the ground shifting from frost into solid sheets of ice. With not a scrap of frost touching himself, the icicle stave raised up to form a number of frozen spears, each one looking etched to look like smaller versions of the lance he used to destroy the vault door in Mercurius. "But will that be enough to match me?"

The Princess of Pain simply grinned, gesturing with one hand.

"W-What-?!" Eris felt her whole sense of self rocked by an unseen force from beneath her feet, twining around her. It was enough to surprise Robin as she was sent careening straight into his right flank, derailing his instantly fired ice spears. Missing Brutalia's person they showered the earth with explosions of impact, showering the area with more twisting debris that circled around her like orbiting a gravity well.

"All aspects of my person is enhanced with the doll in my grasp, from physical attributes to my own attunement to my magic," Brutalia exposited with glee, spinning around on her heels as her glowing verdant person gleamed with crackling majesty. "It's taken me so long to get to this point, but now, I'm all too thankful to those Fairy Tail brats. If it wasn't for them taking Bobbie out of the picture, I wouldn't be able to pull this off so easily."

"As if I'd let you-!" Robin began to sneer, raising his stave to form a number of hastily crafted orbs, discharging them at rapid bullet pace towards her. To his surprise they'd be deflected by her fan, dissolving into vaporous powder as she locked eyes with him. Unfolding the fan, a large gust of force thrashed him, sending him backwards and sending Eris tumbling away in addition.

Righting himself back onto his heeled feet, he'd find the magical tool in his grasp was missing. Looking over he'd see Brutalia grasping it with a loud clang, gripping it firmly in her free hand which held the doll.

"And now, I've disarmed you entirely," She declared with a narrowed glare that complemented her twisted, smiling expression. "Handsome, everyone. You may vent your frustrations on him as you wish."

"Oh no!" Eris cried out, staggering to her feet as she saw a slew of thugs poised with weapons and fists warped with their own magical abilities. Handsome himself galloped with inhuman momentum, a hideous grin over his broad face as he lifted a hand up and formed it into a guillotine blade. "ROBIN!"

He sighed.

The Hoodlums' leader, surrounded by enemies and no allies to aid him. He was brought back to a memorable scene. Beautifully dressed peers, all enamored with jewels, silk and magical items beyond compare. A court of people that knew not of his prestige but of just his surface value.

It was like that, all over again.

"_You know you're above them, right? Why care what happens to the common folk."_

He leaped back, avoiding the scything blow of Handsome by a few inches, his periphery vision taking in how it easily cut through the earth. Gritting his teeth, he pranced away from another Hoodlum's wind-blade, carving through space with an effortless grace while using his own natural physical dexterity to his advantage. One after the other, gang members attempted to take shots at him with vile expressions of joy, all pent up from their constant repressed feelings due in no small part to his power.

"_Am I no different from you...brother?_" The Generous Robin thought, closing his eyes as he vaulted over Handsome and dexterously spun into the middle of the crowd. He saw Eris look on with fear, Runt and Mirror look on in awe and Brutalia smugly staring at his dancing form with amusement. With tears forming into his eyes, a rush of liquid slipped out of his gloves, with fingertips forming claws as his teeth began to bare more prominent fangs. "_All I wanted...was to be...a hero!_"

Palming the nearest thug's face, a sudden discharge of liquid surged out in such a voluminous torrent that his skull concaved then exploded from the gesture. Pushing still forward past the now headless body came an explosion of water, erupting from the campsite within the mountain's valley. Like a tidal wave of blue, it swept outward towards the thugs, sweeping them all aside with nary the exception of Brutalia resisting with her energy shell wrapped around her body and Handsome leaping up above the liquid torrent preemptively along with Eris using her own magic.

"Water Magic?" Brutalia questioned, her eyes widening as she witnessed what looked like a _lake _forming from a single gesture. What was a dirty meadow at the base of several proximate peaks was now filled to the brim with liquid as if it was unleashed by an underground river. Levitating herself above its roaring movement thanks to her augmented spell she looked over at Handsome as his eyes stared with disbelief at what he was witnessing. Turning to look ahead herself, she then felt her throat constrict and her stomach knot into place. "N-No...it can't be-!"

"Robin...?" Eris queried out, her blue halo of light that kept her in the air caused her to watch with surprise. Looking over, she saw Runt had pulled herself and Mirror out of harm's way, despite her current level of strength depleted. A glance at the hill that Bobbie was laying, it looked untouched by the new wave of a instantly formed sea. When she fixed her gaze ahead, she looked on with a sudden disbelief of the kind of person that stood in its epicenter, surrounded by disoriented to gargling thugs immersed in his newfound body of liquid.

"I have a confession to make," The teal haired boy spoke lowly, his voice more grated and rough. Raising his moistened crown they'd see turquoise scales glistening around his brow and around his eyes, speckling around his jawline and under his chin. A pair of fins extended at sharp angles from his ears, similarly jutting from his sleeved elbows up to his wrists and from the back of his calves of his heeled boots. Fanged teeth bared prominently, and blue eyes were now a vivid turquoise with slitted pupils; all while projecting an immense roaring aura of magical power that gave off the silhouette of a massive turquoise scaled beast all knew was that of a dragon!

"I am not the Generous Robin of folklore tale. I am...Robyn Lazuli," He admitted aloud, casting his gaze from Eris to a tree hanging Runt and Mirror, and then finally to Handsome and Brutalia's stunned pair of expressions. "If you don't know that name, I'm sorry. If you do know that name...then you have my sympathy, for I wish this wasn't the case either."

"Lazuli?!" Eris thought out loud. "The Pergrande Kingdom's famous artisan family?!"

"How the Hell does that explain you being," Brutalia began to say, thrusting a palm forward, slicing the water apart by a bludgeon of her magic aimed straight towards him. "A freakin' Dragon Slayer?!"

The aforementioned Robyn seemed to disappear. The spot where Brutalia struck was merely a reflection in the water. A blur of movement was seen rushing to and fro across the body water that was made manifest. The dark mage gritted her teeth, swinging her hands around to uplift the water, swirling it around and thrashing it at any hint of a shadow, repeatedly blasting it apart.

"Stop moving around! Damn you!" She screamed, each and every strike failing to meet its mark. Gnashing her teeth, she turned to call for aid only to see the thugs that had been subsumed in the water were now limp to maimed bodies, bereft of life, within the newly formed lake. "Of course they were taken out in a single move. Handsome, I need back-up-!"

A sudden gallop was heard and Brutalia felt her eyes widen and her head turn to comically stare at a retreating frame of the abnormally large Take-Over Mage rushing away.'

"Hey! Get back here!"

"I love a good fight, but I prefer to live, thank you!" Handsome countered, his frame quickly disappearing out of sight.

"Useless!" The enraged petulant woman screamed, shoving the water back with a horrid shriek. "ALL OF YOU ARE _USELESS!_"

In the high decibels her throat released, a sphere of water, earth and air forming. Veins throbbed around her forehead down to her neck and across her face. Clenching the stave and doll tightly, she swung her fan around, scything the lake in a broad stroke towards the shadow she saw moving. Making contact, she had a dark grin spread across her face.

Then, a geyser of water shot back, slamming into her protective bubble.

"NGH!" Brutalia winced, finding herself thrown across the valley straight into the mountain's base. Stone gave way, exploding but her shield wavered and distorted. Reopening her eyes she saw her spiraling vortex of magic was being pierced by the jettisoning current of liquid; one that took shape with a clawed hand piercing through, with Robyn's eyes glaring in a menacing glow beyond.

"H-How?!" The clad crimson queen stammered out, her control breaking down as assuredly as her defenses were. "I planned for months. I schemed, I took my opportunity, and yet...someone like you," gritting her teeth, she released her bubble and unleashed a river of energy straight into Robyn's front; like a magma blast of kinetic fury. "WHY IS SOMEONE LIKE YOU SO STRONG?!"

Eris watched in awe. The blaze of light was something akin to a pure Ethernano discharge. The Curse Magic was being amplified by her feverous emotions being fused by her innate magical power. Even the most extraordinary mage would find this barrage of pure force to be something that can't be deflected so easily.

A pair of watery hands, twisting currents that moved in intense revolutions around the gloved limbs, spun around in counter-movements and split the magical bludgeon in twain, leaving Brutalia stunned and breathless.

"**I have very few rules, Brutalia. I expected everyone under my charge to follow them,**" He stated, his body clad in a fabric of rushing rapid water that gave the impression of a phantom image of his own body rather than a simple exo-shell of magic like Brutalia's. Glowing pupiless eyes stared from beyond the torrent liquid threads, his voice coming out reverberated as if echoing all around her. "**Do not take more than necessary. Do not fight amongst yourselves. Do not attract unnecessary attention. Do not cause needless slaughter. And, above all else...!**"

A hand pulled back, and an incantation filled the air independent of his own words, the roaring limb became a phantasmal effigy of a draconic limb formed into a massive watery fist.

"_FIST OF...!_"

"**...do not betray me!**" He howled.

"_...THE SEA DRAGON!_" He intoned as he thrust his fist straight into Brutalia's face, crashing her into the mountain with enough force to splinter it upwards by hundreds of meters.

Deep within the hole of the mountain, Brutalia's energy finally petered off, A swollen face, ebbing blood with whited-out eyes was splayed in an undignified posture. The stave crumbled and the doll lied in tatters in her grip along with her own telltale fan.

Withdrawing from battle, the features of his draconic side receded, and once more the slender beautiful form of Robyn remained. But he didn't look Eris in the eyes, nor did he look at Runt and Mirror. As the fallout of the battle began to settle, the sky itself began to shed tears and a fall of rain began to crescendo across the mountainside and over the central part of the kingdom.

"Eris. I know I don't have a right to ask this because I kept this from you. But...if you can please do one last thing for me," He spoke almost too quietly to be heard, looking away as he began to walk away from the mountains and back the way they had all came. "Look after Bobbie for me, alright?"

The rain hid the tears well, for the Generous Robin's last venture.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Demod20: **

_This was a wild ride. I know not everyone saw this coming, but to those of you paying attention, congrats! You get a cookie! Jokes aside, I had a lot of fun unveiling Robyn Lazuli's true nature in more ways than one, and while my partner did great set-up (along with some great additional touching scenes with Doranbolt and Wendy), I fleshed out our main antagonist of this Arc by shedding a bit more of his mentality when in the face of so many ruthless bandits that have fell into his ranks not by loyalty, but sheer greed. With Eris, Bobbie and even Runt and Mirror being the obvious exceptions, Robyn stood alone against the horde of conspirators and unveils his trump card: The Sea Dragon Slayer Magic he kept buried inside. Now with no one left to call aid, its up to his power alone to get back his treasure...and possibly save the unfortunate people of the world. Can't wait to show you the next chapter of what comes next!_

**LastationLover5000: **_This was one heck of a chapter! My section wasn't as robust as my counterparts, but I don't consider it unimportant. This is a chapter he and I have been waiting to write since we first had this arc under consideration, and suffice to say, I'm very pleased with it. This will be the first bit of our extra world-building, where Hiro failed to expand on his world, we won't. So we introduce the Lazuli Family, an affluent family responsible for creating magical items in Ishgar. A dear reader wasn't fond of our Robin Hoodlums, as I believe he saw them as stand-in villains. With Robyn, I hope you see we vied for a bit more depth; he's not a hypocrite, he's an idealist. The next chapter is going to be an absolute doozy! I hope you all will be here to see it!_


	10. A Dragon's Tears

**Chapter 10 - A Dragon's Tears**

**Written by LastationLover5000 and Demod20**

* * *

_Endless, fluctuating black in human form. A creature of ill reputation, heralding destructing wherever it went. Eyes, brilliant pearls in the inky dark, gleaming down towards a young girl who could not defend herself. The creature, so obviously draconic in-shape that it was painful, did not move, however. It leered at the girl, yet it did not budge. Waiting? Biding time? Watching?_

_A chill wind rushed through, frigid as winter and causing the girl to feel it in the depths of her bones. Someone — a human — followed the wind, walking in front of the draconian shadow. He was beautiful, more beautiful than she remembered seeing him; his long blue hair fluttered in the wind, and his eyes as bright as jewels. He sauntered over to the dragon's side, more serpentine than human in the sways of his movements._

_It was then that the young man's hand pierced the body of the dragon; it roared mightily, and the blue-haired boy slipped into the shadows. The shadows solidified, freezing over, bit by bit. The pearls of eyes became sapphires, the fluctuating darkness scales of frost. Standing before the girl was an ice dragon, who opened its mouth in a howl._

* * *

In her bed, Wendy Marvell sat bolt upright, her breath ragged as if she'd just run a mile. Her clothes stuck to her body, drenched in sweat. She quickly surveyed the dark room; Doranbolt slept soundly on a cot near the foot of the bed, and at her side, a freshly recently-from-hospital Carla slept on peacefully, ignorant to her sudden movement. Wendy was inwardly thankful she hadn't had a fit while sleeping. These two — the dearest friends she had — did so much for her, so often, that Wendy didn't want to disturb the respite they received in sleep.

Even if she herself couldn't find any.

_I can't tell Doranbolt, but the dreams aren't stopping..._ Wendy thought ruefully. _But this one...this one was different...it almost feels like an omen...is something coming?_

Completely awake, Wendy could hear a rumbing noise fill the sky. Outside the window, she saw that the sky was dark with clouds, and as such, she couldn't tell what time it was. It wasn't simple an overcast sky, however; rain was falling heavily over the city, and what the young girl could hear as a fierce, howling wind caused the rain to slant. The pattering against the castle walls was soothing, a sound she could find comfort in, though she hadn't counted in rain. Nothing in the forecast had predicted it.

_...Another omen?_

A rustling caught her attention; Wendy saw that Doranbolt was sitting up, lacking the grogginess typically associated with someone who had just woken.

"Wendy, you're awake already?" asked Doranbolt, his voice clear. "What's the matter? Did something happen?"

Briefly, the Slayer contemplated lying to him. She didn't want to keep worrying him. This notion vanished immediately as it came — Wendy didn't want to lie to him, to deceive him, when he'd sacrificed everything to be her friend. Thus she spilled everything, elaborating on her dream, the finer details, and how she'd seen the Generous Robin combine with the shadowy figure she knew to be the lingering nightmare of Acnologia.

Doranbolt was silent for a moment, his pensive. "I'll have to be honest: I've never placed much stock in omens. Perhaps it was my line of work as a spy for the Magic Council, but I've always preferred to deal with facts when possible. However," he added, as Wendy did not look thoroughly convinced, "I've been bending my thought process quite frequently as of late." He placed both hands on the girl's shoulders, gripping them firmly. "Even if it is an omen, it won't help us right now."

The sky lit up outside with a flash of lightning, timed perfectly to a booming thunderclap.

"When this sudden storm clears up, we'll track his scent like before," Doranbolt said, trying to sound reassuringly. "Don't dwell on it n—"

Doranbolt was interrupted by a sudden quaking impact off in the far distance; this itself would have been meaningless, but it was followed by the perception of a now very familiar surge of magical energy. The Generous Robin was approaching Mercurius Castle at an alarming rate!

* * *

**Crocus City, Border Wall**

At the furthest edge of the Capital, Crocus, all was silent. Border guards patrolled the perimeter, yet the position was largely for show. Crocus was a city which had gone largely assaulted for years, a product of Jade Mountains being generally sufficient enough protection; the wall had been constructed the one time in ancient memory that an army from a neighboring nation had managed to invade Fiore and strike at the heart of its capital. The wall rose approximately seven meters high into the air, and encircled the city's borders completely, barring the gated entrance along what could be described as a main road.

It was perhaps because of this air of laxness that the guards found themselves casually shooting the breeze with each other.

"I'm just saying," one of the patrol guards tried to defend himself from an affronted looking associate. "If I hadn't _seen_ the Grendel there, I wouldn't have loosed the grenade like I did!"

"What was that?!" asked the other guard, anger rising as his voice pitched. "I can't hear you over my _busted eardrum!_"

"Don't be like that," the first guard tried to console him. "It'll get better!"

"No it won't!" shouted the second. "It's going to be stuck like this forever!"

"Both of you, can it!" shouted a different guard. This man was obviously their superior, and this could be divined by the more intricate armour he wore and the way he carried himself. His eyes squinted, focusing into the distance where it was clear he could see something. "What is..."

"That can't be..." one of the other guards gasped in horror.

What they saw was something that was hitherto unheard of in the modern era. Flying against the backdrop of a furious storming sky, small at first but growing larger, looked to them all like a dragon. It was shrouded in a veil of water, but the shape was unmistakably draconic and it was flying at ludicrous speeds. At that very moment, adrenaline rushed through every guard, every soldier present, and they turned to their commander; training was what they would rely on here, as many of them had never seen real battle before.

Orders were issued quickly and efficiently. Patrol guards manned the cannons, others loaded them full of explosive, magical-quality shells. Others mounted giant crossbows, filling them with bolts the size of large tree branches. The air was split by the sound of explosions, the air whistling as the giant crossbows loosed bolts through the sky. The dragon, now fully revealed to be indeed what they had expected — liquid in the shape of a dragon, a shimmer, glistening aquatic creature floating high in the sky — withstood each blow easily, reforming its body when it was loosened by the detonation of cannons and piercing of arrows.

An enraged roar filled the air, mixed with grief, resentment, and disappointment. It opened its maw, discharging a torrential deluge of water downwards. It struck the wall, cutting through a portion with ease and causing it to crumble. Many guards and soldiers lost their footing, falling into the rubble below, destroyed cannons and artillery following. Explosions rocked the ground as the cannons detonated on contact, killing many of the men. Without a passing regard, the dragon continued its flight, ignorant to its own destruction.

The dragon flew over the city at large, ignoring the common folk who were racing through the streets, panicking, screaming, shoving others into buildings in a desperate bid for their own safety. The dragon swooped downwards, crashing the entirety of its body into the Main Street, only a dozen kilometres from the Mercurius Castle. The water slipped from its body, melting away entirely and flooded the street; wood, glass, and people washed away into the distance. Where the dragon had crashed, the lithe form of a young man was revealed; Robyn Lazuli, sans staff, his face empty and broken.

He walked forward slowly, his heeled, diminutive soles trudging through a sloshed road. Robyn strode single-minded towards the Castle which loomed in the distance; it held his treasure, it held the reason his dream would come true. He couldn't go back without it. He couldn't apologise to Bobbie, or face Eris. He couldn't mend things with Runt and Mirror. Not until his hat was back in his hands. As the young man approached the castle gates, he spotted a man, sporting a clean-shaven, angular head and a swollen jaw with a spectacular bruise he covered with a gauze. The very same man that Max had slugged nary a week ago. Initially, the man looked to be making an escape, but when he saw Robyn, turned and pointed.

"Who th' 'ell are you?!" slurred the man. It was quite clear he was drunk, and had Robyn been in a better state, the smell of alcohol would have been even more apparent, regardless of this downpour. "Can't ya see th' town's bein' attacked?! Get th' 'ell out of 'ere, you stupid kid!"

Robyn turned. Slowly. Methodically. One could almost hear the slow turn of his muscles, the creak of his bones. His eyes, empty and unblinking, stared down the drunkard. He took a step.

"You wan' fight?" crowed the man, clearly unable to sense the room. "Yeah, I'll give ya what for ya little shit!"

A slim, gloved hand was raised to shoulder height. Water began to swirl around it, moulding itself in accordance to Robyn's will. First a shapeless mass, it quickly gained solidity and sheen, revealing a powerful lance, made of water that appeared to be much more solid than liquid. Robyn wasn't looking for a fight.

_He was looking to kill._

Robyn's steps forward were corpse-like, unsteady, yet the lad made his way towards his would-be victim with a most assured hoisting of his blade. The glinting, liquid brand cut through the air, and Robyn was sure that it had bifurcated the drunkard...

...only for a flickering of movement and a blur of physical form proved him wrong. Team Wendy had materialised right in front of Robyn, and reacted quickly. Max conjured a Sand Shield, using his magic to deter the blow of Robyn's incoming blade as quickly as the pouring, whipping rains made his sand utterly worthless. Doranbolt was able to snatch the man and teleport him a ways away to safety. Wendy, meanwhile, landed neatly on the ground next to Max, her eyes burning with fire.

"Good save, Doranbolt!" cried Max.

"Your reflexes saved us!" replied Doranbolt from the distance. "It worked out better than I could have hoped!"

"Wendy, what should we—?" Max began but Wendy shook her head.

"It's like I thought," Wendy said, not looking at either one of them. She'd wondered how she missed it before. When he'd invaded the castle previously...and when she'd tracked his scent deep into the Jade Mountains, something had been interfering. Not merely her thoughts, but a sweet perfume, most likely something the Generous Robin himself wore. But here, in this rain, unnecessary colognes and perfumes were washed away. But a keen Dragon's nose could pick up the natural scent of a human...or a rival Dragon. "I could smell something was off about him, and now that I'm this close with nothing to distract me...I can smell it. He smells like Natsu...or Gajeel..."

Max and Doranbolt understood the implications without being told. This young boy, who was weaving water together like an expert seamstress, was in fact a Dragon Slayer. The idea Max had thrown around in jest made far, far more sense now. The Jade Mountains, only easily navigable when someone like a Dragon Slayer was present...Max had postulated, only as a joke, that the Hoodlums might have had one.

It proved true. Their Dragon Slayer stood in the pouring rain, staring at Wendy with sunken eyes. His body possessed a strange assortment of scales, his ears finned and webbed. He almost looked like a human Dragon.

"Oi...why did you save me...?" the drunkard stared hazily from Doranbolt, to Max, to Wendy. "W-Wait, I know you lot...you're those Fairy Tail mages...the second rate ones who survived the destruction...!" His finger, which he'd only just noticed he was pointing, went slack. He remembered quite clearly the blow to his body and pride that Max had given him, and in the midst of all this, felt much more sober. "Why did you all save me, when I said those things before?"

"Because that's the way Fairy Tail is," replied Max simply. "Now stop talking and get out of here. We're going to need the room."

"Max, Doranbolt...please help everyone evacuate the city!" Wendy's directions were crisp but sudden, taking both of the Fairy Tail mages by surprise. "I'm going to stop the Generous Robin...so you all just focus on protecting everyone else!"

To Doranbolt, this sounded absurd. "Wendy, we've seen how strong he can be...and now that we know he's a Dragon Slayer, we can't possibly expect to fight him in a one-on-one match! We've got our best chances with the three of u—"

The young Sky Dragon Slayer turned back to smile at Doranbolt. "Doranbolt, please trust me. When two Dragons meet...this is the only thing they can do." Her face breaking into an unsteady smile, she added. "At least, that's the kind of thing I think Natsu would say!"

Doranbolt was floored. Swallowing the lump that began to build in his throat, the former Rune Knight nodded slowly. This wasn't the same Wendy who had cried into him after the Tenrō Island debacle. _No, that's not fair to say either...there's traces of that Wendy here or there...but she's stepping forward, bit by bit. _Returning Wendy's smile, his far more confidence, belying the worry he couldn't help but feel bubble within him, Doranbolt told her, "Wendy...promise you'll make it back to me."

"I promise!" Wendy replied confidently.

"You heard her, Max," Doranbolt's attitude shifted almost immediately, and he quickly made his way towards his bowl-cut companion. "We're not needed here, so let's on getting the citizens out of here! Arcadios should already be on his way to provide back up; we'll do what we can until he arrives." Doranbolt placed a hand on Max's shoulder, ready to take him side-along via his Teleportation.

"Doranbolt...are we just going to leave her?" Max was insistent, worried, unable to take his eyes off Wendy's back.

"We're going to trust her. Now come on."

The two instantly vanished, leaving the drunkard to hobble up and away on his own.

Wendy and Robyn were entirely alone.

Taking a deep breath, Wendy steadied herself. There was no one else here now. No one to impress. She could admit to herself...she felt terrified. The bravado she held together with her own composure threatened to slip as she asked Robyn, "Did you really intend to kill that man?"

Robyn blinked. A few moment's deliberation seemed to register in his brain, and the young lad finally stood at a proper posture. Light did not return to his eyes, and yet at the same time, a shadow of a flame danced behind them. "Wendy Marvell...a Dragon Slayer. I thought you smelled familiar, but I wasn't quite sure. Too much was going on when we last met...but I can smell you clearly now."

"You're ignoring the question," accused Wendy.

"'m not ignoring it," shot back Robyn. "I threw away everything to come here...I've disbanded the Hoodlums..I've betrayed the friends I cared about...and I've broken my own rules. What was one more unnecessary sacrifice if it means realising my dream?"

"I didn't think you were the type to kill someone for convenience," Wendy replied, surprised at the scorn in her own voice. She may have had no prior relationship with Robyn, but the young girl had gained a measure of respect for his methods and ability to hold such a group like his Hoodlums together. He hadn't bothered to kill them, and even if he'd failed to mince words, Wendy felt like Robyn had genuinely believed in what he was fighting for.

Now he was surrendering his own morals and pride for the sake of a quick victory.

Wendy shook her head, her long hair flying everywhere in the pouring deluge. "I thought you were a good man. What happened to your rules?"

"Good men don't need rules," replied Robyn icily. "But today, you'll find out just why I had so many."

_When two Dragons meet...this is the only thing they can do._

Those were her words to Doranbolt because it felt like the right thing to say at the time. Now Wendy knew that this hadn't been mere boasting. Robyn would not see reason. He was determined to fight her, she could smell it.

"You won't return my hat?" he asked. "You should know you can't use it."

"We're not returning it," replied Wendy. "You won't cooperate with us instead?"

"No," replied Robyn. "If you won't give me back what is rightfully mine, then I _will_ take it. And if I have to kill you, I will!" Robyn hated hearing the words pour from his mouth, but too much was standing in his way now. Too many obstructions. Destiny itself seemed intent on throwing himself out of the path he tried to carve for himself...in defiance to its whims, he clawed tooth and nail for a different result. _Even if the world fights against me, I will become a hero to the people who need it!_

So Wendy would have to fight. She'd wanted to avoid it coming to this, but it appeared there wasn't any other choice. "I was hoping to find another way that didn't involve fighting you, Generous Robin."

"There isn't another way," Robin said bitterly. "But if we're going to fight, then I suppose it's only fair to divulge one bit of truth. You may have figured it out, you may not have, but I'd rather you know my real name. The 'Generous Robin' is dead. My name is Robyn Lazuli; whether you know what that means isn't what matters, merely that you know it."

_Robyn Lazuli...so we were right,_ The faintest flicker of recognition crossed Wendy's face. The young girl clenched her fists, and her magical energy began to build. Robyn recognised this, and responded in kind. Their cheeks swelled with a massive surge of magical power.

_"ROAR OF THE..."_

_"...SEA DRAGON!"_

_"...SKY DRAGON!"_

Two, simultaneous twisters were released from the mouths of the Dragon Slayers, an explosion of magical power thundering through the city. Robyn's, a surging, swirling waterspout. Wendy's, a violently rotating tornado. The Breath Attacks of the Dragon Slayers ripped the ground asunder, crashing against each other. Furious winds fought against raging rapids, the two elements fighting to overwhelm the other. The result was a powerful explosion, wind and water rupturing against each other, the shockwave knocking Wendy and Robyn in opposite directions.

The Dragons had begun their battle.

Robyn expertly twisted himself back upright, his body performing a pirouette as one boot's heel sliced through the earth, stopping his momentum while discharging the rain that accumulated over his body. With his hair flipping around in an arc of moisture, the Sea Dragon Slayer looked ahead, seeing just in time how Wendy herself handled her rebound.

The Sky Dragon Slayer had gracefully bent her elbows skywards and palmed the slick road, gathering air along her rapid uncontrolled motion to gather energy for her next move. Just as she'd slam head first into the face of the building, she sprung herself by her dirtied hands, spiraling upwards into the air akin to a corkscrew. Despite the pouring rain she ascended into the air unimpeded, flipping backwards just as she reached the top of the four story structure, stumbling a bit upon its slippery yet angled tiles.

Had this been a more jovial circumstance, the Generous Robin would've complimented her performance and even give her a rating. But his blank eyes just stared ahead, his face a mask of stony conviction.

With his mind on autopilot, he raised his hand upward, and the rainfall coalesced to his whim. Glowing with a teal-hue, Wendy recognized its shape as it turned into what looked like a diamond shape, though constantly rippling as if on the surface of a deep ocean.

And then, he threw it, with a howling roar as it bore to shred her into pieces with its drilling momentum; and take off the top story of the building in a messy impact.

Noticing something different, the cobalt haired girl swished her hands around, arcs of cyan colored air swishing the water with her gestures. In but the time of several seconds passing, she managed to form what looked to be a funnel of air, shaped like a dragon's jaw that latched out and grasped it between its fangs; the impact causing the roof to crack and the building to quake with a visible dispersal of rainfall and air.

With gritting teeth, Wendy's eyes widened as she swung her slender arms around and hurled it over the ruined gate of Crocus - leaving it to explode with a massive distant impact of pressurized liquid, boring a hole through the forest and into the hills.

_It wasn't as fast as his ice magic, but..._ She thought, her eyes looking on with fear at the carnage that was wrought at the distant wilderness vista just a few kilometres away from Crocus. _...its power is the same. Could it be that his wand, up until now, was just freezing his Slayer Magic and enchanting it to move faster?_

The rainfall was so constant, she almost didn't hear him. Her blue hair whipped with her head, seeing the teal-haired young man catapulting himself into the air with one strong leap of his legs. Draconic wings formed from his slender back, propelling him forward in a blur of high velocity, with water coated claws poised to lance towards her in a single charge.

Leaping away at the last second, she twisted her upper body around, palm-heeling at his water-winged back - casting _Vernier_ while also unleashing a powerful gust of air straight at his back.

The effect was instantaneous, shearing through the top of the building and with a loud boom crashed into the face of one, two, three, then four buildings out the other end with a series of explosive impacts.

_I can't match his offensive power, but what I lack is made up for with enchantment and just as much air as there is water here,_ She determined, looking on with determination exuding from her amber eyes.

Then, the rain stopped.

"**Secret Art: Abyssal Depths - Eternal Expanse!**"

A visible undulation of energy shot up like a pyre of a grave. Cyan light danced up towards the sky, and with its thrum came the command of the rain across the city. Rising out of the debris on wings of the sea came a dirtied, but still beautiful boy. With a trickle of blood dripping down his forehead over his stony face came a light of fire; anger was beginning to brew within his teal colored orbs. With hands outstretched, and energy flaring, the rain over Crocus halted and what continued to fall formed a dome of water, cutting off a swathe of the capital from the outside world.

"What just happened?!" Wendy exclaimed, feeling her hope become doused by this new situation. "Did he just, stop the rain? And form a barrier?"

"You must have thought that was real clever, sending me flying with that enchantment of yours," Robyn replied with a sense of irritation in his voice. Thanks to the rain being muffled to the working of his barrier, she could hear him, even though he was a good sports field's distance away from her. Continuing on, he raised his fin-adorned arm with claws formed with the fabric of his glove, gesturing with emphasis as he spoke. "This spell denies exit or entry of those I deem as enemies. Thanks to this storm, you won't be able to escape; and not even your friend's teleportation will breach this spell - my Secret Art, _Eternal Expanse_."

A feeling of dread washed over Wendy. Hearing that Doranbolt would be unable to reach her, let alone anyone else from the outside.

"_Wendy...will you come back to me?_"

Biting her lip, she realized that her gut reaction was wrong. This wasn't about surviving, nor was it about simply winning. The stakes were much too high to be thinking of herself.

With a deep breath, she coiled her being and then refocused it back at the distantly hovering Robyn.

"Escape? You're mistaken, Robyn," Wendy replied back, her own aura igniting in a surge of serene air, pushing back the rain while a cacophony of wind swirled about her form. Her emerald dress flourished and her blue hair sweeping around in the air as she balled her fists and shouted defiantly at him. "I'm here to stop you, and return everyone's treasure back to those whom it belongs; I can't flee, not when my friends and everyone else is counting on me!"

"You'll try," Robyn sneered, clenching his outstretched hands into claws - forming the rainfall around him into rows of watery shaped fangs the length of swords. "And you'll fail."

"**Sea Dragon's Biting Rain!**"

Clapping his hands forward, a horde of shrieking projectiles of rainfall shot towards her, slashing rooftops and shattering glass as they poised to shred her apart.

"Three fold enchantment," Wendy whispered, her glowing body suddenly wrapping three shades of magick till it turned into a cyan mantle of light. Leaping off the roof, she dove head first into the horde of liquid spears, twisting about as she glided across the capital's skyline.

"**Sky Dragon's,**" She began to utter, a rushing torrent of air sweeping from the stilled firmament, the cyclone that gathered around her slight frame suddenly whipping out in a pair of slicing air waves that deflected the piercing wall of water. "**Wingbeat!**"

Tapping the top of a roof, she throttled herself forward, using each building's top to get herself closer and move even faster than the last bound towards her target. With the added momentum of her leaps, she gathered wind around herself, trailing a line of cyan behind her as her body produced a visible arc of light in a leap straight up to meet him head-on.

"**Fist of the Sky Dragon!**" Wendy cried out, her fist swinging towards his still-form, her glaring eyes meeting his stony stare that looked at her impassively.

At the last second, she saw him rear back, his shoulders bending and consequently so did the wings of water erect from his back. Unable to veer herself away, she saw him bend his neck out of the way, letting the powerful gust of air kick his hair up; nicking a cheek in the process.

A clawed hand grasped her by the face and a sudden surge of water encompassed her vision - throwing her back with prejudice into the closest building with such force that an explosion of moisture, dirt and debris shattered it upon impact.

"You were painfully linear," Robyn chided mockingly, raising a clawed hand, his fin-formed-ears fluttering as his scale-framed eyes narrowed down at her barely visible form pinned by a pair of half-crumbled walls. "You've got another ten years before you can catch me off guard with such an easily telegraphed stratagem."

Wendy grimaced in pain, though it was dulled thanks to her prompt enchantment a minute ago. It'd hold, for the next few minutes she figured, and by that point her body would likely give out from the stress.

Creeping a stare with one clenched eye and the other opening she saw Robyn raising a hand, forming another one of the watery diamonds, the same as before. Rotating swiftly, it was poised to strike her at any given moment...yet, it was hanging there, dragging out the time. What was he waiting for?

Closing her eyes she inhaled deeply, taking in the fresh storm air into her lungs and filling her body with power. Raising her petite fingers she slammed them into the rubble covered earth, spearing into the earth and then - bellowed straight down at the collapsed ruin surrounding her, catapulting the soggy flotsam ahead of her propelling body straight at him.

"As if that'd work-!" Robyn snarled aloud, throwing his liquid spell at it, grinding the jetsam into powder and boring a hole deep into Crocus's earth with a violent crash.

And then, a violent pain exploded across his skull.

"Hngh!" His left eye blanched while the right eye clenched shut, a dainty foot coated in pressurized air slamming against his teal-colored crown as Wendy had arched herself purposefully around his blind spot.

With his head ringing and his vision spinning, he could do little other than flail an arc of watery claws at her, only for her to jettison herself with another spurt of air from her mouth, bouncing over him before she'd throw both of her feet straight down on his shoulders between his artificial wings - and enchant his speed with a bit of _Vernier_ for additional velocity.

A scream tore from the Generous Robin's throat as he slammed deep into the hole of his own making, causing a geyser of earth to fly upwards. At the same time, the rain that had stopped in the vicinity began to pour, though with less veracity thanks to the barrier surrounding them.

Thrown off course thanks to the shockwave, Wendy found herself bouncing back first onto the nearby street. Squeaking out grunts from every bounce, she rolled over onto her hands and knees, scraping them along her enchanted flesh much to her chagrin.

Gaining some respite as she pushed herself upright, she turned to see the air shifted and the rain swirled like a river to pour into the hole that Robyn was buried into. Smelling an accumulation of moisture, she felt her hairs stand on end along her neck as a sense of danger was being formed in the hole.

Leaping up, she just barely avoided a sudden eruption of water that tore through the soil like a drill. But, instead of it being a projectile or a spell, she saw a watery bodied silhouette akin to the young man she was battling. Soaring across the heavens it arced around and sought purchase on the ground before bouncing straight towards her still airborne personage.

"**Secret Art: Abyssal Depths - Body of the Maelstrom!**"

In a moment, Robyn's body - swirling with the ferocity of a sea's vessel devouring whirlpool - swung his fist of a twisting gout of water. With eyes glowing yellow behind a shell of spiraling waves, his arm connected with Wendy's crisscrossed palms, a blast of wind parrying his watery bludgeon.

And with a full turn of his upper body, he launched her across Crocus, her body shooting across it like a star and slamming into the city wall with a moist slapping sound; followed by a vicious crunch as she became embedded into its surface.

Coughing up blood, eyes widening palpably, Wendy felt pain throb her whole body despite deflecting the worst of the blow.

"I've got to push myself...higher," She croaked out, her blurring vision seeing the incoming streak of liquid heading straight towards her. Clenching at the wall she was stuck inside of, she inhaled a slew of the storm's air, revitalizing her lungs and filling her pained figure with energy.

T_hree Fold Enchantment_..._times two!_

With widened eyes shrinking her pupils to pins, she wrenched herself out of the wall and took to the air above the spearing burst of water that tore a hole through the Crocus wall. Kicking off the skyline, she propelled herself by the very rushing air of the storm that still stirred within this barrier-encroached vista. With her eyes staring ahead she saw the blur of teal colored water tear across the skyline, aiming to strike her again with another direct blow.

Ducking below the swift torrential currents that wrapped around Robyn's arm like a spiraling armor of fierce rapids, she palmed his chest, discharging a gust of air that was enhanced by her multiplied strength and magical power.

Her eyes widened with shock as it only rippled across his slender chest, barely exposing the robes beneath the twisting liquid that coated his body.

In her surprise, she felt a sudden sharp pain strike her from below, as the Sea Dragon Slayer catapulted her upwards with a sharp kick into her abdomen. Sailing high into the air she barely had the chance to right herself before she plunged back first into the firmament that Robyn had created-

-and, like a rubber band, she bounced back downwards at a life threatening speed.

"S-Sky Dragon's-" She began to inhale, her body free falling as she took in air that swathed the enclosed arena of their choosing, her mouth expanding along with her chest; right before exhaling downward at the rushing ground she was poised to impact. "ROAR!"

A loud, bellowing howl erupted from her throat and a cyclone kicked up the water, earth and air alike in a single blast that rebounded her from the incoming floor of the Crocus street. Spiraling around, she barely had the chance to right herself again, only for her to ram feet first into an upper story window and emerging into an abandoned inn room, crashing across the bed and out the door into the hall. Splinters of wood showered around her with flecks of glass, parts of her skirt torn, her skin scraped and bruised but not severely injured thanks to her current slew of enchantments under a twice multiplier.

"He's not only stronger, but faster and tougher. Its like that armor of his enchants him just as much as my Vernier, Arms and Armor do," She deliberated aloud, wincing as she began to push herself on all fours. She could already hear her enemy moving on the outside, approaching her vicinity. Her mind swam as she began to creep around a wall, hiding as she struggled to regain a semblance of initiative while coming up with a plan. "I'm not as strong as Natsu, nor as tough as Gajeel. I have to find a way to even the odds...even for a little bit."

She realized that her enchantments had been having an effect, but only for brief moments. If she was to succeed, she'd have to take it to new heights, even to ones she hadn't tested out or refined just yet.

"No time like the present; its time to show Robyn why I'm a Fairy Tail Wizard!" She growled out with a forced, but confident grin as her face trembled under the weight of all those who were counting on her.

"**You're really taking your time getting out here,**" The haunted, echoed voice of Robyn spoke as a pair of draconic talons clenched on the window frame and a pair of clawed hands clenched at the sill, a head bending in with an opaque surface of rushing water only defined by a pair of golden eyes behind its passively moving surface. "**I was about ready to drag you out; I'm not finished giving you the beating you deserve, wannabe Slayer!**"

"I'm not a wannabe," Wendy spat back, her hands clenched and her feet stepping forward with a furrow on her brow. "I'm Wendy Marvell. My mother and teacher was Grandeeney, my family is Fairy Tail, and you're acting incorrigibly."

"**That last bit may be true,**" Robyn intoned, the yellow spotlights for eyes shrinking a midge as if imitating a narrowing of one's optics. "**But I'll be sung as a hero in the ballads once I've retrieved my hat. You were a mistake, after all. You should be dead like the rest of your guild.**"

"I wish they didn't die, and I wish I wasn't separated from them. The pain is so great I wake up screaming at night," Wendy confessed, her face grimacing and teeth clenching hard enough to make her molars grind. Spreading her legs, her fists balling up, a sudden howling gust of air swept past the windowsill perching Robyn and swimming around her in a visible mantle of colored air. The walls buckled, the floor cracked and the roof tore as the wind became enchanted, and by extension so did the body of the Sky Dragon Slayer.

Amplified, augmented and brought to a further height, the light soon became an incandescent spiral that brought her blue hair upwards in a spiraling torrent of cobalt tresses, her skirt sweeping around her legs and rushing around her chest. Eyes had her pupils turn into draconic slits and fangs became pronounced; all at once a howling torrent of a white scaled dragon blowing the building's top off its seams, revealing Robyn looking back with unseen awe at the newly improved Wendy.

"Three Fold Enchantment...Times Three!" Wendy declared, her eyes gaining a pigment of cyan within her normally hazel irises. "I'll defeat you here, Robyn, and show you why you're wrong!"

* * *

**A/N**:  
**LastationLover5000: **_We did it, everyone! We hit our tenth chapter! This, right here, is where my co-author and I have wanted to get for a long time. I had a lot of fun with the set-up to this battle; the nightmare, the consoling, the utter rampage of an effeminate dragon slayer who has lost just a little too much. Robyn was such a great addition, at least I feel like he was, so when my co-author suggested him all those months ago, it paid off tremendously in this chapter and this chapter alone. But we're not done yet; Wendy and Robyn's titanic battle of little dragons has only just begun; Robyn has his goals, and Wendy has to protect her friends and defeat Robyn. My friend's section with the battle was great; full of action and emotion, just how it should be! We'll be getting another chapter to you soon!_

**Demod20:** _This is one of the reasons why I've been wanting to get to this point. A real first for Wendy, her very own Dragon Slayer duel! All this time she's fought in a group, but she's never had a rival in strength as well as ideals. Robyn Lazuli is a tragic individual, who desperately wants to help people but his twisted sense of morality is pushing him down a darker path. Wendy, despite empathizing with him, sees the destruction he's causing and knows the only way to truly stop him is beating him on her own; to show that despite her own insecurities and weaknesses, Wendy at her core is a true mage of Fairy Tail. Loved the setup my co-author did and I can't wait to start the next chapter ASAP! ^^ Great stuff he did all around, love working with him!_


	11. Rescues In Rain

**Chapter 11 - Rescues In Rain  
Written by Demod20 and LastationLover5000**

* * *

A clap of thunder, one of numerous tonight, was what finally broke Charle out of her slumber. The small bodied, white furred feline felt her eyes shake in place as lids blinked rapidly. The flash of light from the outside only cast a brief shadow, illuminating the darkened room she was reclined in. The bed with white sheets and surrounded by flowers did little to comfort the gnawing feeling she had.

And then, a flash across the bedroom brought her vision to a rain-filled ruined street.

"W-What is this-?" She began to choke out, shivering as if she was feeling the cold rain that was pelting her fur despite being indoors. "Is this...a vision?"

She heard a familiar cry, and from the spot she clung to was from up high. She couldn't make out her surroundings, only what was right in front of her. A torrential spiral of water, boring straight into Wendy, her body flayed as her head reared back and let out a wordless gasp. Even as a shower of blood mingled with the watery gale she saw the one who was responsible - the face darkened by the lightless environment, but illuminated briefly in a flash of lightning with telling blue eyes, a cherub oval face and sweeping teal hair that whipped behind a slender back that was covered by soot, blood and bruises.

And then, just as quickly as the flash of the vision vanished, she felt something from the outside.

"Come on! We have to hurry!"

"City's gone to Hell because of those damn brigands!"

Voices echoed outside of her bedroom, causing the Exceed's ears to turn in the direction, her face looking in the direction of the door. She heard men clinking armor on, obviously having just got out of bed and rushing past her room without care to their surroundings. Bells rang beyond the tumultuous storm, giving her more clarity of the current state of the environment.

Looking out of her window, she saw something that caused her eyes to contract and her mouth go agape. A massive barrier of water encircled the western gate, with its district cut off from the outside by the dome. And beyond it, an unmistakable series of flashes of light, with Magical Aura as the catalyst. One the colour of cyan and the other a deep cobalt; each one clashing violently and giving off the vaguest impressions of ancient eldritch beings - those of the extinct Dragons of old.

"Wendy!" Charle exclaimed, her body bolting upright and unlatching the window. Despite a gale of the storm hitting her in the face, soaking her fur, she extended her wings and called upon her native magic to propel her forward. Despite the aches she felt, she propelled herself towards the source, with a determined if not panicked look across her face. "I won't let you die, Wendy! I won't abandon you to this fate!"

Her head plunged into the barrier, mind steeled at the prospect of being repelled or even harmed.

But instead, she saw something that brought her dread; an entire swirling ocean separating herself from the distant lights that made up what she thought was only a few meters away, but now was certainly even far more vast of a distance. Within this water she felt a swirl of movement, simulating the torrential sea she had experienced not but a short time ago. Her blood went cold, her spine chilled and her head swished back and forth, before throwing herself out of the dome of water into the sky with wings shivering in place behind her back.

"W-Wendy...I-I can't...!" She began to sob, covering her aching, wet bandaged chest. Even as the storm raged outside, her body floating passively in the sky's downpour, she couldn't help but look with understandable fear at the swirling dome of liquid that seems to absorb the rainfall as it lands on its surface.

_If I take that plunge...will I get to you at all? This magic seems to spawn an entire sea, and I may drown in that time before I-_

As she was rambling in her thoughts, the memory of the vision she bore witness to brought everything into clarity. If she hesitated, let her fear get the better of her now, how would she be able to ever live this down? This was her only chance to avert the horrid future she kept seeing. This was the moment she was to seize and make fate twist in the way she wishes, rather than await it with dread!

Taking a deep breath, Charle raised her head and, with a pair of puff cheeks she zoomed straight into the barrier once more with even more gusto.

"_MAX SPEED!_"

A white blur pierced the roiling sphere of water, parting the artificial currents and racing straight towards the light she knew was Wendy's Magical Aura.

_No matter what obstacle lies between us...I'll always come for you, Wendy...I'll always protect you...even if it costs me everything!_

* * *

Robyn could scarcely believe what he was seeing.

This was the weak, trembling girl who could barely do anything against his lieutenants without exhausting herself. He had discounted her and even pitied her before.

But now, she stood defiantly, exuding a fearsome aura that matched the ferocity of her gaze that stared defiantly back at him.

"**You think this ****_changes_**** anything?**" He spoke back, his echoing voice growling as his form stood upright, rearing back a fist with a swelling balloon of water over one fist; one that discharged into a throttling geyser aiming to strike her dead in the chest. "**That you can ****_beat_**** me?!**"

In a split second, Wendy's eyes dilated and her body stepped to the side, avoiding the deadly lance of water that soared past her, crashing through a building top and smashing it effortlessly into pieces. Robyn sneered and leaped forward, twisting his watery-shelled body around to slam a liquid covered heel at her temple.

Bending below to let only her rising swirling hair, coursing with wind, to be struck Wendy spun on her heels across the dirtied apartment floor and twisted a fist upwards towards his imperceptible mask of water-

-dispelling it in a thuum of force, followed by a howling wind that jettisoned the now bewildered visage of Robyn straight up into the sky with a torrential whirlwind left in his wake as he spiraled uncontrollably into the sky.

"Ngh?!" Robyn grimaced, clenched teeth spewing blood across his jaws and dripping downward from the sky.

"Her Enchantment boosted her that much...?!" He hissed out, stopping his upward momentum with a mighty flap of his liquid wings attached to his _Armor of the Malestrom_. Leering down, he'd open his eyes wide, seeing that Wendy's person was roaring upwards like a spiraling missile, The soles of her feet acted as jet thrusters, propelling her upward while her hands were gathering air in her swift forward momentum.

"What did I say before?" Robyn snarled, his face becoming covered by a rushing tide of water once more, glowing gold orbs shining like haunted lights as his voice echoed with his hands reared back in anticipation. "**A linear attack will never beat me!**"

"Wingbeat," Wendy began to speak, throwing her arms in a overlapping crisscross "OF THE SKY DRAGON!" Unleashing a pair of slashing whips of wind magic that connected against Robyn's body with a tremendous _thunderclap_ of force.

The resulting impact's effects were immediate. Water was dispersed, hissing steam released as Robyn was knocked off kilter higher into the air, arms and face along with his robe covered waist exposed by the blast.

And in his rising ascent, he'd see Wendy already close the distance and grasp his hands; twisting him around in the air and coalescing her slayer magic in tandem with an enchantment of _Vernier_.

Then, she'd throw him, with exceptional force towards the middle of a street, away from the other buildings.

"NOT THIS AGAIN!" Robyn shouted as he somersaulted through the air at an uncontrollable velocity. Slamming into the street's surface, his body expelled a great deal of the water he had covering him - cushioning him to an extent - leaving him in a liquid-filled hole that he slowly rose out of.

Just as before, his fin-like ears twitched and his eyes looked up with shock at the sudden arrival of Wendy's lithe frame roaring towards him with veracious momentum.

With gritted teeth, he swung his arms around, calling upon the water of his newly formed hole to swathe over his arms, forming gauntlets of the Maelstrom Armor he had donned earlier. As she neared, he bent his legs and leaped forward, his clawed hands surging forth to stab straight into her charging shoulders the moment she got within reach-

"SKY DRAGON'S ROAR!" Wendy howled, bellowing out from puffed-up cheeks she had inflated upon the swift journey to him, unleashing a powerful twister right before his watery-poised fingers could make contact; slamming straight into his face and chest, throwing him backwards with a hellish propulsion across the structures that lined up behind aside the street he had landed. Building after building, the young man cried out as he felt himself slamming through solid brickwork, glass and other forms of structures as the grinding twister kept pushing him backwards.

Then, as if by providence, he slammed into the farthest point of his barrier's perimeter and the water came sweeping out, petering the roar spell out as he sank into the endless expanse of his spell.

Even though the water gave a soothing warmth to his Dragon Slayer body, the young man felt pain throb all over him. It had been years since he had felt this kind of physical agony, but that paled in comparison to the welling frustration that he had within his soul.

His lieutenants were either hurt, betrayed him or had left due to his own lack of trust in them. The band was dissolved, and his hat was not within his possession. And what's worse, a girl of this naïve nature was obstructing his path.

"_Robyn, the peasants aren't worth your empathy. Focus on things that matter._"

Eyes widened, irises vanishing and the young man erupted from the wall of the barrier he created, reappearing in full adornment of Maelstrom Armor. Wendy herself was in a defensive stance, anticipating his emergence though still looked alarmed as he crossed the gap with a swift bound that left her leaping back as he impacted the ground with a watery splash that leveled the structures still standing in their proximity.

Reemerging from the water, he blurred forth and slammed a clawed hand into a palm-heel thrust of Wendy's, the clash of water and wind casting a howling twister around the pair as they danced in the air.

"_**THIS IS YOUR FAULT!**_" He roared out, throwing another monstrous punch that forced Wendy to block with a raised arm; sending her flying backwards across the skyline as he followed up with another flap of his liquid wings, punching at her raised arms with palpable claps of spiraling liquid meeting wind-encircled flesh. "_**I WAS TO BE A HERO TO THE HELPLESS, THE DISENFRANCHISED, AND THE WEAK!**_"

A third punch thrown and Wendy leaned back, letting it pass over her harmlessly while she released a shrill cry of "_Sky Dragon's Claw!_" that connected with his face, tearing off his swirling rapids' mask and cutting his cheek in the process. Grasping her extended foot, he'd slam her into a house's roof, of which she bounced off and leaped back to slam both of her feet into his chest, exploding his armor and throwing him across the air in an uncontrollable spin.

Growling, Robyn had his faux-wings flap outward, stopping his backward spiral and then threw himself back towards her. Renewing his assault regardless of his armor falling apart, he began throwing his watery legs and arms in a flurry of blows at Wendy as she began to weave narrowly around them, avoiding his blows as his aim was less graceful and thus more predictable.

"MY COUNTRY WOULD RULE FAIRLY, HONESTLY! AND YOU'RE TAKING THAT DREAM AWAY FROM ME!" He cried out, eyes beginning to tear up as he angrily spun around and landed a heeled kick to her side; only for him to see her elbow jab into his ankle, catching him in the process. Grimacing, he pulled back a watery claw and shouted as he threw it towards her face. "WHY ARE YOU STOPPING ME?!"

The cobalt haired girl leaned her head to the side, a grazing cut slashing the left of her face while her own wind-coated fist straight across his face; her enchanted knuckles packing enough power to pop the atmosphere and send Robyn reeling across the sky straight into the ruined street that he had entered not long ago. Staggering to his heeled feet, he wiped away the blood from his bruised mouth, staring angrily as Wendy floated down a dozen yards away from him with a resolute stare poised at him.

Then, the stare turned soft and a sadness radiated off her that caused him to look confused at her.

"Robyn...I know you mean well, but this _isn't_ the way," Wendy spoke softly, her words carrying easier within this space that no rainfall could touch, let alone anything from the outside world. Amber eyes looked at him, her hand touching her own chest for emphasis as she raised her voice in channeling passion to her words. "I too was alone in thinking I didn't matter and I couldn't help people as I am. But, ever since I found my new family in Fairy Tail, we have been able to save entire worlds, kingdoms and people from certain peril. Wreaking havoc, stealing from others, killing people...this isn't the way a hero should act!"

Robyn stared, his face looking as if he'd been struck by a gong.

His mind reeled with a dozen voices, thoughts and emotions. The water that beaded off his skin began to trickle down, pitter-pattering onto the debris ridden cobblestone street. Gloved fingers trembled at his side, legs buckling and his whole person began to sway in place.

If he wasn't a Hero, was he the Villain?

What point was there in any of this if people wouldn't accept him?

Why was he here?

Who was he saving?

Where was he really going to go after this?

"Robyn, I know you'll have to answer for the things you've stolen, the harm you caused, but," Wendy began to say, a smile breaching her face as she began to walk towards him, her Aura beginning to wane in intensity as she approached with no aggression in her intent. "I'd like you to come to Fairy Tail, see for yourself we're not the reckless monsters you make us out to be. We truly care about people, and wish to do right by them. I think you really could-"

"THAT'S **ENOUGH!**"

Robyn's shrill scream stopped Wendy short in her approach, his Aura erecting a pillar of steaming water from his person, shooting straight into the ceiling of his barrier spell. Covering his person in upward rushing liquid, glowing eyes were seen and his voice echoed as hands balled up at his sides within the shadowy outline of his visible person.

"**The Monarchy must fall! I will not be coerced into joining their lackeys! You, and the rest of the Mages, will fall with them!**"

"R-Robyn-!"

"No more talk," Robyn's voice came out clearly, the pillar of liquid beginning to take shape and flow off his wet personage. "Your death will make everything make more sense. And once it does, my resolve will strengthen even further!"

To Wendy's horror she felt her enchantment begin to loosen even further. The strength she had tripled on her body in speed, strength and endurance had taken its toll. Without knowing the full gravity of her actions, it was only a matter of time...but she wished now wasn't that time!

Gritting her teeth, she saw the tower of H20 transmute in a sheen of teal, twisting around with a loud thrumming sound. The air spiraled around with a spray of rain splattering around that'd be quickly siphoned back into it. Within seconds the monstrous formation of moisture turned into what looked like a draconic fang, spinning around like a drill that cast the air around it in a whirlwind of force.

All stemming straight from the right-wrist of the Generous Robin, raised over his head, with his hair whipping below and eyes fixed with a vivid turquoise glare aimed straight at her.

"_Secret Art: Abyssal Depths - Vortex Fang,_" He intoned with a deadly serious sneer. "This is my strongest technique. It has the force to break apart even a diamond wall; and soon, turn your body into ribbons!"

Wendy, even among her panic, saw an immediate error in the irrationally acting boy. The spiral of water was anchored to his arm, and thus, relied completely on his own body to make a charge. If she could somehow take advantage of his counter-intuitive means of attack she could-

_The air surrounding his fang!_

Just as she made this discovery, Robyn's own eyes widened at the air suddenly being siphoned from his own corkscrewing weapon. He'd see it flow from his upward raised lance and straight towards her mouth; an action that left her completely open.

"I won't give you the chance to recover!" Robyn snarled, hefting the weapon forward, bending his knees and launching himself with a powerful forward leap towards her. "NOW DIE!"

It was here, that time slowed.

During the Sea Dragon Slayer's motion towards her, something peculiar rippled within the ceiling of the Eternal Expanse. A white form, blinking from its depths, undulated outward before rocketing outward with a sonic boom left in its wake. The streak of alabaster curved around, a streak of light that veered straight towards the occupied flank of Robyn whose sight had narrowed into tunnel vision; leaving him unable to see the blurring form that connected with his skull with a sudden jarring impact.

"Ngh?!" He veered off course, the drilling lance swinging to the left and then to the right as his weapon didn't aim true as Wendy reoriented in time to see what had struck his skull.

"I...made it...in time-!" Charle croaked out, bouncing off Robyn's head and onto the street behind the charging Robyn.

With eyes turning into slits, and the enchantment flaring up back to full power, Wendy leaped forward towards her adversary while bending just enough to avoid its razor tip. The outer rotating drill of water slashed her side, leaving a gout of blood from her body, but she had all but blocked it out as a howling torrent of her magical energy formed around her fist, aiming straight towards the disoriented face of Robyn Lazuli.

"FIST OF THE SKY DRAGON!" Wendy cried out, her knuckles slamming straight into Robyn's nose. The force of it cracked it, and then throttled his body backwards with his drill dispelling in a splash of water as he'd slam straight into the remnants of the gate behind him. Soon after, the barrier of his own making dispelled, collapsing in a shower of heavy rainfall that lathered the now collapsed Wendy.

Clutching her wounded side, she grimaced in pain but looked over to Charle, her eyes watering as she looked at the barely conscious Exceed with gratitude.

"Charle...you...saved me," Wendy declared, closing her eyes as tears fell freely from her face. "Thank you."

"I just followed the light," Charle weakly replied, still breathing heavily to refill the void from her lungs having no room to be filled during her imperceptible journey across the abysmal watery depths. "And before I lost my strength, I saw you...and where my vision I saw..."

"Its alright, Charle," The cobalt haired girl replied, cradling her side as she lied onto her back, and looked up at the still raining sky, clouds beginning to part as rays of Sunlight began to grace the city below. "Because, in the end, I knew we would make it. Cause that's what it means to trust your friends in Fairy Tail, right?"

Chuckling despite herself, Charle too laid on her back as she cradled her now freshly sore skull, "Yes...yes it is."

As Doranbolt soon returned with Max, recovering the injured Charle and the wounded Wendy, Arcadios found Robyn Lazuli unconscious and in bad shape from his own participation in this battle. The sky began to clear up, and after a long, fearsome exchange, the Hoodlums had finally been defeated.

Fairy Tail, had won.

* * *

**Crocus City, Mercurius Castle, Throne Room  
**  
There were approximately three-thousand known languages throughout the world. In each of these languages, multiple words existed to express sentiments of tiredness, of exhaustion, of the way a soul is worn when too much is placed upon it at once before it is ready. Even if Wendy had a tome before her with a detailed analogue of each of the world's languages at her disposal, these words easy to access, she doubted she could find one to express the level of exhaustion she felt. The battle against Robyn Lazuli was over. Wendy knew that she'd never fought harder in her life; when she fought Master Hades, Wendy had her friends, and she was mainly support. King Faust was not a threat on his own, it was merely his suit that made him a force to be reckoned with.

Robyn, however, had been a powerful opponent all on his own, and he'd pushed Wendy past her limits and beyond. Much of Crocus was damaged, torn asunder by the battle of tiny dragons — though Wendy sheepishly had to admit this was par for the course with her guild, what the Third Master would have referred to as an 'occupational hazard' — yet the treasury was, by and large, saved. Wendy would have given anything to be in the care of a soft mattress and warm sheets, yet she found herself, alongside Max, Doranbolt, and Charle, standing in the Mercurius Caste throne room for what was certainly more times than she'd ever thought she should be allowed.

This time, however, it wasn't for a mission briefing.

Wendy, had bandages covering her body in odd places — her thigh, ankles, neck, and forehead — yet the wound that troubled her most was invisible under her clothing. Narrowly avoiding Robyn's Secret Art, the Vortex Fang, had saved her life but given her a deep wound. A Sky Dragon Slayer couldn't use her magic to heal herself, but the Mercurius Castle medics were in a class of their own, Healers without compare in Fiore. After the battle, the most severe of Wendy's wounds had been patched within two days; even the Healers found themselves unable to completely heal the wound that Robyn's attack had left on her; Dragon Slayer magic left its own scars, and it was harder to heal when a Dragon Slayer did not act and consume their element to boost the process. Wendy now bore a scar on her body, from her ribs down to the beginning of her hips, and she did not know if it would ever heal properly. Wendy was released on the third day, with instructions that the body was simply do heal itself from that point onward, as medicine only afforded so much.

And thus, Team Wendy stood in a line before the throne, each member of the team having cleaned themselves up as best they could to look presentable. Wendy stood out, being the sole injured party member — Charle's wounds were now all but memories — but her wounded appearance did not detract from the celebratory mood. Sat firmly on her throne, Princess Hisui E. Fiore's deep green eyes scanned the group at large, and she wore the proudest smile on her face. Arcadios, clad in a unique armour of a brilliant jade shade, worn only for special occasions, stood firm by her side.

The Commander of the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron stepped forward, unfurling a scroll of parchment between gauntleted hands. When he spoke, his was firm and carrying.

"Fairy Tail, consisting of members Wendy Marvell, Max Alors, Doranbolt, and Charle. For your services to the Royal Crown of Fiore, you are hereby bestowed the following rewards and honours. To Team Wendy, the four of you shall receive the highest reward that the Kingdom of Fiore can offer: The Blooming Rose Medal, given only to those who had done the kingdom a great service. To the Fairy Tail Guild at large, the promised pool of 50 Billion Jewels will be rewarded as repayment for fulfilling the job request."

Team Wendy barely managed to stifle a gasp; the 50 Billion Jewels had been expected, it was promised, and it was the entire reason they'd taken up the job request. It was still surprising, howeer, to hear it brought up again after this entire debacle had been resolved. Yet it wasn't just that; the Blooming Rose Medal was the highest distinction offered to any regular citizen of the Kingdom of Fiore. Few had earned it in years past, and only those who had achieved great heroics without any military or royal acclaim to their name. Team Wendy would be the first in the last century, and the first ever to earn such lauding as a group.

"With the Blooming Rose Medal in hand, you are officially recognised as Heroes of the Fiore Kingdom, and are granted certain privileges within the walls of the Capital City of Crocus. Free passage in and out of the Capital, audience with the Royal Family without need of an appointment, and free room and board at any inn located within the town, among others. With these privileges, you are considered Friends of the Royals, and are entrusted to you in the hopes that you will treat them with responsibility."

Shock piled upon shock. The Blooming Rose Medal was prestigious, but they hadn't expected this.

"I-I think that's quite a lot, isn't it?" whispered Wendy to Charle.

"Hush now, Wendy," replied the Exceed. "You might not think so, but you, Max, and Doranbolt pulled off more than anyone expected. You deserve this." Inwardly, Charle didn't believe that she had any proper place at this ceremony, and had Wendy not insisted she come, would have stayed behind instead. Even though she'd been there for the final moment, and managed to save her best friend, Charle did not believe that any accolades should go to her. But she decided to tough it out for the sake of Wendy.

Doranbolt was no stranger to honours, having earned a few in the service of the Magic Council, and thus he took these in stride.

Max, however, was flabbergasted. "F-Friends of the Royals? That's a _lot _of responsibility to give to regular Joes like us."

"And yet it is well earned," replied Hisui smoothly. "Nothing that you all did for us is undeserving of anything less. My father and I deliberated, and it was only due to it being considered improper conduct that we did not create a _new_ award of prestige for what you did for us. You saved not only Fiore, but numerous countries by accepting this mission. The Lazuli hat contained far more than our treasury; it is currently a matter being discussed by countries such as of Veronica, Seven, among others how to divide it back among the victims of Lazuli's theft. You are heroes to far more than our country."

Wendy had nothing to say to this. She hadn't set out to become a hero when this started, she only wanted to preserve funding and reputation for her Guild. _If all these countries really know about this...I think we might have succeeded and then some...!_ Wendy couldn't see the expression plastered over her face, and was surprised to see Max, Doranbolt, Charle, Arcadios, and Hisui all beaming at her. Wendy tilted her head, confused. "I-Is something the matter?"

Charle shook her head. "No, Wendy. But you're smiling; well and truly, smiling!"

"She's right," replied Doranbolt, wearing a toothy grin of his own. "I didn't think I'd see a real smile on your face so soon..."

The Dragon Slayer girl had never given that consideration before. She knew she'd smiled before, but had it actually been so different? Had they been forced? The young girl placed a hand to her face, as if trying to feel the difference in her smile now; this only caused Hisui to giggle.

"Wendy, I know you've been through quite an ordeal, more than even the rest of your Guild members," Hisui began. Max did not object. It was true that many in Fairy Tail were suffering from the loss of their friends, but Wendy had been there to see it. She was young, and it impacted her the most. "But now...things are going to be different. Opportunities will open up; doors you didn't know existed before will swing open. To be frank, I'm looking forward to see the sort of path you pave for yourself."

"Our little Wendy making a name for herself already?" said Max, pride in his voice "Chin up, eh, kid?" he added, as Wendy averted her eyes from Hisui's, embarrassed by the praise. "You don't really think Erza or Mirajane became the 'Titania' and the 'Demon' by being humble, do ya?"

"It's just...I..." The rest of Wendy's sentence was drowned out in her mumblings. Her face flushed to resemble a ripened beet.

"Never you fear," Arcadios laughed heartily, folding up the parchment and tucking it away in his armour. He patted the section of his chest where the parchment lay, making sure it was unable to move. "A little humility goes a long way; no one gets far on arrogance alone, and young Wendy is a shining beacon of modesty. She'll go far with that attitude."

"Agreed," Hisui replied. She raised a hand, and motioned in two robed figured, both of whom held in their hands plush, purple cushions. Something metallic and crimson glinted under the palace's Lacrima lighting. The figures strode towards Team Wendy, and, leveraging the cushion in a single hand, pulled up the glinting object for all to see. It was a medal, ornately designed, glowing a deep, vivid crimson. The name suited it well; whoever had cut the jewel used to make this had painstakingly made it resemble a rose in bloom, down to the intricate shape of the petals. The jewel rose was attached to a jade-coloured cloth ribbon; the robed figures lowered one each onto the necks of Wendy, Max, Charle, and Doranbolt before stepping back.

Each member of Team Wendy was now adorned with the Blooming Rose Medal, marking them as 'Heroes of Fiore'. The cut jewel on at the end of the cloth shone brightly upon each of their chests, glinting crimson.

"If you wish to return home posthaste, we shall see that you are escorted to Magonolia under the supervision of the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron itself," Arcadios bowed with respect and deference to the comrades he had fought with to reclaim the riches of his benefactors. "Any sum of jewels would make you a target for rogues and brigands of all sorts, but 50 Billion is its own brand of madness; we want to see to it that Fairy Tail gets its reward without issue."

"We accept the generosity," replied Doranbolt easily. He knew that Arcadios spoke the truth; carrying that giant sum, even if they carried it in the largest denomination of bills the castle could provide, would only lead to trouble. Wendy was still recovering, and while he and Max were as well as they could be, fending off bandits while defending Wendy and Charle could prove troublesome. "To be truthful, we were considering being on our way as early as the morning after tomorrow; it isn't everyday we get to come to Crocus, after all."

"I like the sound of that," Max grinned. "I'd be willing to bet anything there's a lady in this city waiting for someone like me."

"Yes, and I'm sure she's waiting with the city guards at arm's length," Charle said dryly.

"Um..." Wendy stepped forward towards the throne, her eyes firmly making contact with those of Hisui. Jade met chocolate in a moment of tense silence. "What happened to Robyn after...after I won?" It was a hard way to phrase it; had no one told her she'd won, she might have actually assumed that the battle had been lost. After Wendy and Robyn's final exchange, Wendy had awoken a day later in the hospital wing of the Mercurius Castle; she had no memory of what become of her opponent, and neither Max nor Doranbolt had said anything during their visits.

Arcadios opened his mouth, as if to say something, but Hisui raised a hand and cut him off. "She's no child, Arcadios. We should be honest with her; she is the hero that saved our city, after all." Hisui never broke eye contact with Wendy the entire time, and continued speaking. "Robyn Lazuli has officially be delivered into the custody of the Magic Council, with the assistance of Doranbolt. His sentencing, such as it is, will be carried out by the will of Gran Doma."

"I...I see..." Wendy didn't know what to expect. Robyn and the Robin Hoodlums had committed great crimes against not merely the magical world, but the ordinary one as well. They had used their abilities to steal from multiple countries across the land, and no matter the reason, had placed the economies of nations continent-wide at risk. She should have known that Robyn would be given some punishment, yet part of her had hoped he'd become a friend, even in the middle of their battle. "That's to be expected..."

Hisui stood up, striding from her throne towards Wendy; the height difference was very apparent, the young child standing next to teenage princess. For a moment, Wendy felt as if she was standing next to Erza or Lucy again. The Princess of Fiore knelt down, cupping Wendy's face in her hands, and kissed the young girl's forehead.

"Y-Your Grace!" Arcadios protested.

"You're a child of purity, Wendy," commended Hisui. "I feel comfortable giving responsibilities and rewards to one such as you. I do regret that such a young boy was handed over to the authorities, but there's nothing we could have done." Standing back, Hisui smiled comfortingly. "Formally, as Princess Hisui E. Fiore, acting in the stead of my father, Toma E. Fiore, thank you for your services to the Crown of Fiore; your heroism will never be forgotten, and you will always be welcome here."

* * *

**Crocus City, Mercurius Castle, Bedroom**

The morning sun rose high over a wounded Crocus. The city had not yet recovered from the scars that Wendy and Robyn's battle had left it; roads and streets rent asunder by magic. Buildings shattered, crumbled, falling to the ground in a mess heap of stone and debris. Trees had been torn up by their roots, splayed out onto broken tiled roads. The citizens who had been corralled to safety by Doranbolt and Max had long since come back to begin reconstructing their homes. Surprisingly, the citizens held nothing against Fairy Tail; while some had spoken out against them, the words of Princess Hisui and Arcadios quickly turned what would could have been negative emotions riling up into an appreciation for the efforts of a broken guild.

Wendy awoke late this morning. Charle had given Doranbolt and Max specific instructions to let the girl sleep, and Doranbolt, acting with Charle as Wendy's familial figure, was not one to argue. And thus Wendy had slept into mid-morning, when the sun was nearing high-noon. As she awoke, the covers slid away from her body, revealing the bandages that covered her torso underneath a light-sewn nightshirt. Gently getting out of bed, careful not to wake the sleeping Charle, Wendy walked over a mirror and examined herself. The bandages that had covered her her extremities had been removed, leaving only the one on her head and the one covering her torso to show that she still bore some damage from her battle with Robyn.

In the mirror, where her torso bandages ended, she could see the faint markings of the scar where the bandages could not cover up, just at the beginning of her hip. A childish part of Wendy didn't like the idea of the scar being there. Another part of her was inwardly proud. A battle scar she'd acquired, fighting for her Guild, fighting to protect others. Erza might have called it proof that she was growing up.

Her enhanced hearing picked up the sound of rustling sheets; Charle was sitting up behind her, rubbing her dreary eyes with a snow white paw.

"Wendy...awake already?" the Exceed asked through a thick yawn. "We were...going to let you sleep...until at least mid afternoon."

"I feel like I could have," Wendy admitted sheepishly. "But everyone is waiting for us to come home, right? Besides..." She shifted around. "I really want to get home too; I'm sure everyone is worried." She knew that, after the incident on the Island, she had worried everyone with her behaviour; everyone had been kind to her about it, and Wendy knew that her Guildmates cared. But she didn't like being the source of people's worries.

"You're right," replied Charle. "It's time to go back home."

Wendy dressed hurriedly, pulling on a set of black tights with a pink dress, tying her hair back up in it usual twintails. Wendy had no need to pack anything away — whatever luggage she had brought was already taken to the waiting chariot by the castle's staff, leaving her with her simple change of clothes, and a small bag for her nightclothes. Slinging this bag over her shoulder, Wendy took one last look at the room behind her; this had been her bedroom for close to two weeks. She'd called this castle home for nearly half a month. Wendy was surprised to see how much she didn't want to leave it.

"We can always come back," Charle told her, feeling the same.

"I know," replied Wendy, turning on her heel and walked out of the bedroom door. Making her way down to the first level, carefully avoiding missteps along the stairs, Wendy waved as much of the castle's staff bowed her out. Wendy embraced the crisp air of the Crocus morning, closing her eyes for the briefest of moments as she felt the wind caress her body. It was almost enough for the young girl to begin devouring the air right then.

"Wendy, pay atten—!"

_THUD!_

Wendy crashed hard into _someone_, and fell backwards hard. She landed on her rump, pain shooting from her tailbone upwards. "Ow ow ow ow..." The Dragon Slayer rubbed her rear, trying to massage away the pain. Clearly, she'd collided with someone else, and opened both eyes amidst the pain to see just who had been the unfortunate secondary victim of her collision. If Wendy had expected to see another body splayed out on the ground, however, her expectations were betrayed. What she did see, however, was a set of worn shoes that must have once appeared handsome, coupled with a pair of tattered black slacks. She slowly looked upward, taking in the sight of her strange new encounter.

It was a man. He wore a perplexed expression, his face pale, with rings around his eyes as if he'd not slept in several days. His hair was frayed, reaching his neck, as black as the rings around his eyes. The rest of the clothing the man wore was as battered as his shoes and pant, and if Wendy hadn't known better, she would have assumed the man had scavenged these things from the nearest wastebasket. He wore a long coat, which reached his ankles; it was frayed and patched, and worn over a muddled white dress shirt, tucked into the slacks, which were held up by a belt. Atop his black hair, he wore a fedora of similar colour; it alone seemed to be well-kept out of his many garments.

All in all, Wendy had to admit he was a very strange looking man.

"Ah, my apologies, young lady," said the man, in a voice that was accented in a way which made Wendy sure he was not from Fiore. He knelt down, and extended a hand — she saw that they were gloved — and smiled. "Come, let me help you to your feet."

Wendy took his hand hesitantly, and felt herself lifted effortlessly from the her embarrassing position into a more upright stance. "T-Thank you," she said, flushing slightly at the trouble she'd caused.

"Don't mention it," he replied. "Though it might serve you well to pay more attention to your surroundings; missing even the slightest of details can lead one to ruin, let me assure you."

"You say strange things," said Charle, walking over to Wendy's side. She stared up at the man from the girl's ankles, her wide brown eyes searching, wary. "Who are you? What are you doing so close to Mercurius Castle?"

"Who am I?" repeated the black-clad individual, extending both arms to his side as if awaiting an embrace, but it extended into an elaborate shrug. "A man of no consequence; a traveling merchant seeking his next potential quarry, you could say."

"A merchant?" Wendy inquired, and she bobbed up and down, clearly looking around the man for a cart, a stand, or anything to indicate that he was selling something.

"You don't seem to be selling anything," noted Charle, who had already registered the suspicion lack of merchandise on his person.

"And yet I am," replied the man theatrically. "Yet young Miss Marvell is not yet eligible to sample my wares; I assure you, when the time is right, however, I will have many things on offer — for the both of you."

"I-I never introduced myself," Wendy stammered. She was certainly nervous now. The man seemed kind and easy-going, yet she was more put off from him by the minute.

"And yet you're already becoming quite well known," the black-clad man said smoothly. He made a gesture in the direction of the horizon, his ringed eyes glinting brightly. "The Sky Maiden, survivor of the tragic incident that wiped out all of the strongest contenders of her guild...and now the hero responsible for saving not only this country, but numerous others as well. Kings, Queens, Magistrates, Chieftains and those in power will know your name, child."

"That doesn't explain how _you_ know her," Charle floated upwards with Aera, her eyes level with the merchant's own. "You hardly look like someone in a position of power."

"You speak truth," replied the black-clothed merchant. "However, as a traveling merchant, one hears things as they move from place to place. And, as a merchant, it is only fair that I offer prospective buyers a sample; consider this to be on the house, courtesy of our chance meeting." The merchant knelt down until he was eye level with Wendy herself, brushing past Charle with the ease of someone who slipped through empty air. "You've made everyone aware of who you are, a boon and a curse like two sides of a coin. Reflect on this, as there will be people of authority who wish to grace them with your abilities, or manipulate you for their own aims," His eyes never left Wendy's, but unlike when she'd kept eye contact with Hisui, Wendy desperately wanted to look away, and found herself unable to. "Beware of those in power, little mage. That is my warning to you."

His words bewildering, cryptic enough to leave even the obstinate Charle silent, the merchant drew himself back up to his full height. As Wendy made a move to ask something, anything, some kind of clarification, the merchant walked off, turned a corner, and was gone from their sight.

Wendy and Charle were left standing at the door of the Mercurius Castle, confused and certainly in a different mood from how they were when they'd woken up this morning. Wendy had never had so many questions on the tip of her tongue, and yet Charle only brought one of them to the fore.

"...Who was that man?"

Wendy and Charle made their way to the chariot in silence. The man's words, his sudden appearance, his even more sudden disappearance, his mannerisms; all weighed on their minds. Wendy felt there was more to what he said than the mere ramblings of a wanderer. She didn't trust him. No, it was precisely the opposite, and yet that was _why_ she gave credibility to his words. _It's...something about his eyes..._ Wendy had never once felt so uncomfortable looking into the eyes of another person. Not Erza, for whom one eye was fake. Not Master Hades, for whom one eye was a gateway to all that was evil. _His eyes...they weren't looking _at_me. And his smell...it was so strange..._ Wendy mulled over everything about this man was they approached their exit from the city.

As they approached, Max waved with a bright smile. Astride their chariot were four soldiers, clad in the armour of the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron, who had already mounted their steeds. They were clearly ready to be off and return, lacking any of Arcadios' professional manner. The Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron Commander, however, was unable to leave Hisui's side for something as simple as an escort mission, even if it was to escort the Heroes of Fiore themselves. Doranolt, sitting on the grass with his back resting on the chariot, merely looked worn. When he saw Wendy and Charle's troubled expressions, however, the young man became immediately alert.

"Wendy, you're early," Doranbolt said. "Did something happen on the way here? You look like you saw a ghost."

Wendy and Charle looked at each other. "Well..." Wendy launched into an explanation about the man they had encountered, not even thinking of hiding such a strange occurrence from Doranbolt. She'd asked the man to be her friend; he deserved to know about something as strange as this.

"Hm..." Doranbolt rested a finger on his chin, his face contemplative. "A traveling merchant that delivers cryptic warnings? For someone like myself, who has never placed much stock in omens...he seems like a bad omen on legs. I'll make a note to report him to the Magic Council, but for now, I don't think we can do anything about him, or his warning." Inwardly, Doranbolt didn't want to ignore it either. "I can't tell you how to act on it, only that we can't dwell on it. If you think his advice worth heeding, I'll follow you." Doranbolt replied simply.

Doranbolt was right. Dwelling on the ramblings of a complete stranger right now was pointless. While Wendy couldn't give the man's words no significance at all, she didn't believe they had any bearing on her right now. Shoving the merchant to the back of her head, she allowed Doranbolt to help her into the chariot, followed quickly by Charle, Max, and Doranbolt himself. Seated comfortably in the chariot, Wendy poked her head out from behind the curtain, inhaling Crocus' air for the last time.

"Let's go home, everyone!"

* * *

**The Emerald Mountains, Deep Mountain Range**

Lahar found himself unsatisfied. It wasn't everyday that one of the most dangerous criminal organisations in the country was disbanded — even more so, to have the task be carried out by Fairy Tail, rather than the Council's own Rune Knights. To say he was disappointed with the events would not to it justice, but Lahar knew there was something to be said for beggars being choosers. And indeed he would not be choosey about this situation, for, bound with all manner of restraints, was a mass of bolts and straps with a head attached — that of Handsome.

The pyramid-headed member of the Robin Hoodlums protested violently, but his mouth was restrained as well as his limbs. The Council intended to take no chances with this man. In Handsome's mind, this was the ultimate indignity; not to have lost, but to have been taken by surprise. He had imagined, if he was taken to prison, a glorious last stand, facing off against the Council's agents. But this? To have been ambushed mere days after fleeing his former benefactor…he couldn't stand it.

"I suppose we'll have to content ourselves with this," Lahar grumbled. Straightening his black hair, which had grown tousled in their attempt to capture Handsome, a deep frown set on his face. The Head Captain of the Custody Enforcement surveyed Handsome with the utmost distaste. "The leader was quite literally delivered to us, and we snagged one of the big names...but the other five have eluded us." Lahar went over their codenames in his head: Brutalia, Runt, and Mirror. "Then there's the elf and the assassin…who also remain at large. Can we consider this a victory simply because the head conspirator was brought in?"

Lahar and his Knights were no hunters. They'd found Handsome merely because of a reliable lead, nothing more. With the other four lost to the other, and their abilities affording them multiple methods of concealment, he wasn't banking on finding them anytime soon. He cursed under his breath. At this same time, one of his Knights hailed him down.

"Head Captain, sir!" shouted the man. "We're receiving an urgent call from the Council!"

The sudden proclamation startled Lahar. He hadn't been expecting contact with the Council until he'd returned in the next day. What could possibly be so urgent that it it required calling him out on the field? He made his way toward the Lacrima, through which he could see the image of a wizened old man. The man had one good eye, pointed ears, and long facial hair.

"Org," Lahar bowed respectively, even more surprised more to see the Magic Council's Second Seat having reached out to him personally. "Forgive me for asking, but what's the meaning of this abrupt call? I wasn't required to report back until tomorrow."

"You're being summoned back," Org's harsh voice came through curtly. "We've received an…an unexpected visitor, and it seems we're going to need to reconsider a few things."

"An unexpected visitor? Who?"

Org brought up an image in front of his Communications Lacrima. It was a face Lahar knew well - the entire Magic Council was remembered it. "That's…that's impossible...!" gasped the Head Captain, feeling his blood chill. "I'll return immediately!"

* * *

**Magnolia Town, Main Road**

Wendy sat with her head out of the Chariot's tarp, taking in the view as their vehicle drove them down the main road of Magnolia. This road would take them due north, towards the Fairy Tail Guild building; towards home. To Wendy, returning to Magnolia after her team's little stint in Crocus was an experience unto itself. The sounds, smells, and sights were all different from the bustling capital that housed the Royal Family. The people who ran through the streets all seemed to know each other, even if this wasn't literally the case. People stopped and waved when they saw Wendy's face, causing the girl to blush and shrink back into the chariot.

"Popular already?" chided Max, elbowing the child in the arms. "It looks like the little girl who saved Fiore is going to become the new face of Magnolia."

"I-It's not like that," replied Wendy sheepishly. "They're just...they're just happy to see us after being gone for so long! That's it!"

"Max, don't tease her," Charle admonished. "Save the jests for the others in the Guild."

"Still, saving multiple kingdoms is nothing to be humble about," Doranbolt allowed himself a smirk, arms folding as he tried to maintain a serious air. "Whether you acknowledge it or not, Wendy, you defeated Robyn. Had you not fought him as fiercely as you did, he may not have changed his mind about helping us and releasing the contents of his hat." Doranbolt sounded every bit as proud as he looked. "The Wendy I met in the Lamia Scale building couldn't have done this."

"You're blowing it out of proportion," Wendy insisted, shaking her head so hard her twintails threatened to strike Max about the face. "If Charle hadn't shown up when she did, I would have gotten off with much, much worse than just this scar. And you two were able to get the civilians away from the centre of it all, which let me concentrate. It wasn't just me."

"I-I didn't do much, really," replied Charle, her white fur growing pink around the cheeks. "I just couldn't let you fight alone, Wendy...but my contribution was paltry, really." Charle didn't want praise. For someone who had been put out of the action early on, and then had to remain in hospital for an extended period of time, she didn't feel like she deserved any. _Next time, Wendy...I'll be strong enough to stand by you..._

"Hey, hey, we're not supposed to have a pity party here," Max insisted, trying to lighten the mood. "We should be celebrating! When we get back to the guild, I'll buy all of us a round, what do you say?"

"Wendy won't be drinking anything!" Simultaneously, Doranbolt and Charle turned on Max, pressing their faces very close to his, expressions mixtures of irate and exasperated.

The rest of the journey to the Guild continued in silence, Doranbolt and Charle glowering at Max. Both seemed to have adjusted their seating further from him and closer to Wendy, leaving the bowl-haired man to protest the sudden shit in seating arrangements. The silence, however, left Wendy time to be alone with her thoughts.

_"I'd like you to come to Fairy Tail, see for yourself we're not the reckless monsters you make us out to be."_

_"I WAS TO BE A HERO TO THE HELPLESS, THE DISENFRANCHISED, AND THE WEAK!"_

She reflected on her battle with Robyn; the pain in his eyes, the grief in his screams. He'd wanted so hard to change the world, and she'd had to be the one to steal that from him. It almost made her feel like quite the villain, and while she knew Natsu would have enjoyed playing such a role, she herself wanted nothing to do with it. To save multiple countries, she destroyed the earnest dream of someone who just wanted to do good.

_I hope you reflect on things wherever you are, Robyn..._ Wendy thought, resting her chin in her palm against the windowsill. _If we meet again later, perhaps you'll take me up on my offer? Maybe...we can be friends then..._

The chariot ground to a halt, and when it did, the foursome knew that they were home. They disembarked, thanking their escort and the charioteer, and stood before the entrance to Fairy Tail's guild building. Max carried Wendy's luggage as well as his own, and Doranbolt carried his luggage in addition to the case containing their prize for fulfilling the job request. With a strange sense of anticipation, they pushed open on the wooden doors of their guild...

...and were quickly assailed by an explosion of sound.

"Wendy's back, everyone!"

"You did it!"

"50 Billion Jewels!"

"That was amazing!"

"It's all over the news!"

"50 Billion Jewels!"

"I can't believe it!"

_"50 Billion Jewels!"_

Several people crowded around Team Wendy — the recognisable faces of Bisca, Alzack, Nab, Laki, among others — offering heartfelt congratulations, pats on the back, and whooping cheers. Max took it all in stride, Charle and Doranbolt were indifferent, and Wendy was suitably embarrassed. If she'd been blushing before, the poor girl's face now resembled a tomato with blue hair. Before she could protest, or try to give the credit to anyone else, her guildmates unleashed a flood of questions.

"It's been the talk of the town," Laki admitted, beaming as she straightened her glasses. "You four are all anyone wants to talk about right now: the Heroes of Fiore, right?"

"We heard you got medals," Warren added. "Can we see them?"

"What was it like to fight another Dragon Slayer?" asked Vijeeter curiously.

"Don't crowd them," Kinana called out, fresh from serving a frothing mug of beer to one of the tables. "Besides, shouldn't you tell them what happened?"

At this, Team Wendy entered a full alert mode, and it became clear that Kinana may have chosen her phrasing poorly. Worry crossed Wendy's face, Doranbolt immediately became wary, Charle glanced toward Wendy to see how she was reading the situation, and Max paled at the anticipation of possible bad news.

"Should...we be concerned?" Doranbolt was the first one to brave a question.

"No, no, not at all!" replied Kinana cheerfully. "Come on over to the bar! You won't believe this, but we've got new Guild members."

"We have..."

"...new Guild members?"

Confusion swept up in the place of paranoid feelings. Doranbolt was the most recent addition to Fairy Tail's roster of kooky personalities, and if one didn't count him, Wendy and Charle were the newest inducts into Fairy Tail's guild. It was quite a shock to hear that new blood had joined the ranks. Team Wendy pushed past the people crowding them, until Fairy Tail's bar was in full view. Sitting on one of the stools was a familiar head of light blue hair, grinning smugly at the new arrivals. Rather than his previous, form-fitting attire, he now wore a long, dark blue robe, which flared out on either side, revealing tights-covered, crossed legs, still ending in high-heeled boots. A deliberate cut in the outfit revealed his navel, on which one could see a Fairy Tail brand that matched the colour of his hair. He was the centre of attention, receiving furtive glances from many in the Guild and enjoying the focus. At his side stood two beautiful women, both of whom also displayed a Fairy Tail brand on their left and right shoulders.

"Wendy!" grinned Robyn Lazuli, raising a glass in her direction. "You're late!"

* * *

**A/N**:  
**Demod20:** _This was a fight that I wanted to make sure had a good conclusion. Not sure if this was the best action set piece I've made, but I wanted to be consistent with the people involved. I enjoyed having Wendy use all of the skills at her disposal to aid her victory over Robyn, as he quickly becomes more and more unhinged from all the things he had to endure. And with my co-author's wonderful capping off to this Arc, the conclusion to the contract Fairy Tail had undertook, the mysterious warning from an even more mysterious man, and then the surprise arrival of Robyn at their Guild?! I can't wait to show you all what comes next ^^_

**LastationLover5000: **_We did it, guys! We hit our second milestone! If our tenth chapter was our first milestone, finishing our first ever arc — which I henceforth dub the 'Tribune of Water' arc — is the second! My friend did a fantastic final battle for this arc, and I love how Charle had her moment in the sun during this battle, considering we left her out of the bulk of the arc earlier. My section, however, was the casual part and I had a lot of fun writing it; awarding our heroes their accolades, turns out Wendy matters to people she didn't consider before...and now she's met some random man giving out free advice. But then at the end, Robyn arrives to Fairy Tail! We'll have a slight delay in the next update, as I have a trip planned to the Isle of Armor, but we'll see you all next month!_


	12. Forgivens

**Chapter 12 - Forgivens  
Written by Demod20 and LastationLover5000**

* * *

Team Wendy was thrown into a complete silence. The very last thing that any of them — even the forward thinking Doranbolt — had expected to see, was Robyn Lazuli, sitting in their guild-building, freely swilling alcohol down his throat. The cobalt-haired young man chugged with the force to embarrass an older man, slamming his mug onto the table, the empty tankard clanging dully against the wood. His face flushed bright red, and he grinned at Wendy. "What's the matter, Wendy? Speechless?"

Speechless was a fine word for it. Wendy, Max, Doranbolt, and Charle all stood open-mouthed at Robyn, Eris, and Bobbie, who stood surrounded by their friends as easily as if they belonged here. Contrary to the rowdy Robyn, whose face was crimson with the flush of blood flowing to his cheeks, Eris seemed the picture of composure. She had traded her armour for something befitting a casual locale — or perhaps she simply did not wear armour when not on the road, unlike Erza — and it was easy to see it suited her. She donned a sleeveless, form-fitting green dress, which tapered out to a skirt, cut short just past her rear. It was held up by a series of overlaced belts. Her footwear consisted of brown boots, but she didn't wear anything else excessive. Bobbie, meanwhile, had shifted to the other end of the spectrum; she wore a bunnysuit, which struggled to contain her cleavage, while her face was completely unperturbed.

Even in a building like Fairy Tail, these three stood out.

"I..."

"...Why is he..."

Max and Charle were struggling for words, trying to fight to force some to the surface. Every had been so sure that Robyn was hidden away in some prison cell in the Magic Council's prison somewhere. To see him not only free as a bird, but sitting in their Guild's bar, had done a number on their faculties. Doranbolt had half a mind to wrench the nearest communications Lacrima from someone and read Lahar the riot act, until he remembered that he'd formally resigned; the decisions made by the Council weren't his to judge — assuming, of course, that they had let Robyn go and he hadn't simply escaped.

Eventually, Wendy found her voice first. "Robyn...what are you doing here?" Her wide brown eyes were searching, locking with Robyn's sapphire orbs, as if she could find the answer in his eyes before he spoke. "The last I heard, you were in the custody of the Magic Council; Doranbolt delivered you there personally, and I know that was a short trip." Wendy forced some more grit into her voice. If Robyn was still an enemy, this meant he'd infiltrated the guild. She'd have to be ready to fight him off, sure, but here, in Magnolia? Wendy shuddered to think.

A hush had fallen over the Guild. Normally raucous and loud, it quieted itself quickly; the sounds of laughter and conversation died down, the _thunk_ of wooden mugs on similarly crafted tables faded away. The silence itself created an entirely new sensation; only Team Wendy currently knew the full details of what had happened in the Capital City of Crocus. While their reputations as Heroes may have already begun spreading, Robyn himself wasn't as well known. No one on Team Wendy had seen a copy of the newspaper since then, but Robyn's involvement had largely been glossed over.

Moreover, the Guild Members themselves were stunned. The little girl speaking so boldly to their new member had been a crying wreck only weeks ago. It was an astounding turnaround.

"It seems the little miss has a beef with the newbie," Wakaba chortled.

"There's more to it than that," interrupted Charle. "But that's not the point right now, we'll fill you all in later."

Robyn slid off of his bar stool, heels clacking against a polished wooden floor. Even with his new attire, it was clear that the Dragon Slayer intended to be a show-off. In spite of the fact that Robyn had imbibed enough alcohol to spike his blood levels considerably, he walked and moved with the grace that Wendy was familiar with; gliding across the floor, his hips sashaying with every clack his shoes made onto the floor, the Sea Dragon Slayer came face to face with the Sky Dragon Slayer. Wendy could smell the mead on his breath without even trying; it reminded her of paint thinner, only far, far stronger, yet it was mixed in with the sweeter smell of Robyn's own breath.

Fittingly, the combination turned her stomach.

Both Dragon Slayers were nose-to-nose, within kissing distance of each other, when Robyn spoke again. He jabbed a thin finger into Wendy's chest, the jovial expression he'd worn when she'd entered gone entirely. "I was hoping you'd be a bit more polite, considering the one who extended this invitation to me was you," Robyn said, speaking clearly without any hint of slurred speech. It seemed it took far more alcohol to get him drink than the multiple tankards he'd consumed implied. The young man merely enjoyed acting the part of the sake of the show. "This wasn't my first idea of where I was going to go, if I had to be honest. But you've piqued my interest, which is definitely a first; you'd normally have to be one hell of a hot guy to register on my radar."

"Wait, you invited him?!" Doranbolt asked, incredulous. "Why would you invite a known criminal to the guild?!"

"It's not like it's the first time," said Warren, his voice carrying over the newfound silence from a corner of the bar. Everyone was thinking of Gajeel and Juvia, both of whom were former members of Phantom Lord, a legal guild that had waged war on their own guild, an illegal act under the law of the Magic Council. Gajeel himself had a violent history even before Phantom Lord, and during his tenure there, had been known for brutalising opponents in the way only a savage would.

Helpfully, no one said their names out loud, and Wendy was inwardly grateful.

"Are we missing something?" inquired Laki. "Robyn, Eris, and Bobbie seemed really eager to join the Guild. She even said that you invited her, Wendy!"

"Well to clear up the first misunderstanding, Robyn is a bo—" Max stepped in, grinning. His sentence, however, became a garbled mess before it even finish; Robyn, in a blinding blur, had rushed him, the Slayer's body coated in scales, clawed hand bringing a torrent of water crashing into Max's face. Within seconds, he was floored, and any proof of draconic magic on Robyn's body faded instantly. The guild instantly burst into laughter; they were used to seeing Max be on the receiving end of an unfortunate but well-timed broomstick suppository. This, however, was new. Even Charle couldn't suppress a chuckle.

"W-What was that for?!" Max shouted, once he'd properly recovered his ability to breathe, the hyperventilating dying down. His hair, no longer a bowl cut, stuck sloppily to his face. The sandy-haired man shook his head to shake the water off, spraying anyone near him like a dog. "You're going to attack a man for being honest?"

"I'm allowed to have my secrets," replied Robyn, his eyes glinting. "You're a boor for not having any delicacy."

"He's a boy," Wendy replied bluntly. She had extended him the invitation, that much was true, but there'd be no indication he wanted to take it. In fact, Robyn had shouted her down during any attempt to reason with him in their last encounter. Thus, in her mind, 'delicacy' was a non-issue here.

"A boy?"

"With _that _figure?"

"He's still cute!"

"Yeah, he's cute so it's OK!"

The response to Robyn's true sex was overwhelming positive. Despite thus, Robyn looked affronted, his cheeks puffing out as he whined. "Weeeeendy!"

"Robyn, why are you here?" Wendy asked the question again, more sharply this time. "I wanted to be your friend, but you were having nothing to do with it. You can't expect me to believe you changed your mind."

"Wendy, our little blue bird has already told you," interjected Eris, seeing Robyn's face betraying his souring mood at the direction of the conversation, and hoping to steer it into less confrontational waters. "We didn't have anywhere to go, even after the Magic Council pardoned us. He didn't want to leave us out on our own, so he offered to take us with him here, to Fairy Tail. Isn't that enough?"

"It isn't," replied Doranbolt tersely. "I want an explanation to, or I'll escort him back to the Magic Council myself." The young man cracked his knuckles, his face flashing menacingly. "It'll be too quick for you to even consider striking me, Robyn. So talk."

"Robyn, go ahead," nudged Bobbie. "You've come all this way...and Wendy is not your average girl. I believe you can divulge your secrets to her." The comforting tone from the woman in the revealing bunnysuit — who, on closer inspection, was holding a tray of alcohol clearly meant for Robyn — was an amusing contradiction. Nonetheless, it seems that Bobbie's prodding, more than anyone else, made Robyn decide to speak.

"Papa did it," when Robyn spoke, his voice was muted, subdued, and his face flushed pink from a mixture of emotions unrelated to the drink. "I'm here because that idiot Papa of mine bailed me out."

"Your father bailed you out?" Macao asked, amazed. "From internment at a Magic Council where someone like _Gran Doma_ is now presiding? What kind of influence does your father have to pull that off?"

The former Generous Robin sighed, and walked over towards his seat at the bar, sliding onto it with ease. "Bobbie, please," Robyn extended a hand and Bobbie, more like a faithful maid than a bunnygirl, was at his side instantly, handing him another tankard. Robyn chugged it easily, slamming the tankard onto the bar table; the fresh flow of mead flooding his stomach was a welcome friend, as Robyn figured he'd need to drink if he wanted to loosen his lips for these people. "My name is Robyn Lazuli," he began, to the gasps of multiple people throughout the room. He'd expected as much, his surname would be known even in a far-off town like Magnolia.

That's simply the reach his family had.

He explained, in as much detail as he felt comfortable with, his past as the Generous Robin. It was in the interest of transparency, if he intended to work with Fairy Tail as one of their mages, he felt that they at least deserved to know this much about him. "Papa arrived at the Magic Council, and took their new Chairman aside," Robyn said. "I'm not sure what Papa told them, though I could imagine a few things, and Gran Doma came back — white as a sheet — and told me I was free to go. It took a moments convincing to get him to let Bobbie and Eris go as well, but in the end, he pardoned them too. And so we came here.

I'm not fully convinced," Robyn added, glaring at Wendy. The redness of his cheeks clashed brilliantly with the blue of his hair, and in any other scenario, might have been humorous. "Everything I'd spent years building up, all of my plans, were ruined by you, Wendy," Robyn glowered. "I've not forgiven you, but at the same time, I can't start everything over from scratch. My original goal is out of my reach, so Fairy Tail is my fallback. But if, for even one second, you think I'm going to bend my ways because of your Guild, you've got another thing coming. I'd sooner bail than kowtow to any monarch. I'm _still_ the Generous Robin."

"If it comes to that, and you turn on our Guild, then I'll fight you again," Wendy tried to keep the shaking out of her voice. It wasn't anger, though perhaps there was a measure of that at seeing someone treat her Guild as their 'Plan B', but fear. Fighting Robyn had been the first fight where she'd been almost entirely alone, fighting because her life depended on it. He was a terrifyingly strong opponent, and she didn't relish the idea of fighting him again. "Though...I want to avoid it coming to that. If we're going to be guildmates...then I want you to be my friend!"

Robyn paused at this. _I really don't understand you, Wendy Marvell...I threw everything I had, everything about me, at your feet, and you thrust it aside without so much as blinking...and then offered me your hand and told me to start again..._ Robyn held out a slender hand to Wendy, smiling in earnest. _I'll take it this time...so show me. Prove to me that I'm wrong!_

Wendy clasped his hand in her's, surprised to see how soft it was when the young man wasn't trying to kill her with it. "I hope we can work together soon, Robyn."

* * *

Robyn was assimilated easily into the Fairy Tail guild. In fact, many took to him the way they took to Wendy when she'd first arrived, ignoring the fact entirely that he was indeed a guy. Whether it was selective ignorance, or something else, Robyn didn't know — but he _loved_ the attention. He flitted to and fro throughout the building, checking out each and every male member of the Guild, before shooting them all down with rankings of "less than 5 points".

"Not a single winner among 'em," Robyn mused. "Only that Doranbolt guy ranks _over_ a 5, though I'd say even being a former Rune Knight should dock him a point or two..."

It wasn't simply his cute looks that were winning Robyn favours. His magic was also the immense subject of interest, and several were crowing the young man to ask questions. Robyn had never actually been the centre of this kind of attention before, not the kind where people were legitimately and genuinely curious about him. If he'd had a sense of shame, it might have been embarrassing. So the Dragon Slayer lad allowed himself to be assailed by an assortment of questions from everyone, waiting until they'd all taken their turns.

"You can use Water Magic!?"

"What was with those scales?!"

"It looked so cool!"

"Would you go out with me?!"

Robyn laughed, a chiming bell sound which only complimented his appearance. "You're all way too excited about a newbie," He chided, though inwardly he understood. In the wake of the destruction of their heaviest hitters on Tenrō Island, the Fairy Tail guild had absolutely precious little to celebrate. And yet now, not only had the only survivor of Tenrō come back from her first S-Class mission and was now considered a hero along with the rest of her team, the Guild had gained funds and three new allies. It was more cause to celebrate than anything they could reasonably expect. "I'm the Sea Dragon Slayer! Sort of like your Wendy over there, but everything she does with wind, I can do with water."

"Another Dragon Slayer," grinned Wakaba, walking over to join the rambling crowd that had amassed around Robyn. "Up until the incident on Tenrō Island, we had two other Dragon Slayers — Natsu Dragneel and Gajeel Redfox. I'm not saying a Guild is only as good as its mages...but I'm going to feel more comfortable with someone like you here, kid."

"If we didn't have Wendy, I wouldn't have thought there could be a Slayer who was so little," said Mickey Chickentiger, a grin upending her perpetually blushing cheeks. "I bet yer pretty strong; Natsu's made good with all the Dragon Slayers before — well, except that Laxus — so I was wondering if you'd join my team, kid? Young Mega-Death would love to have someone like you!"

"That won't be necessary."

Bobbie's voice cut across before Robyn could even consider replying himself. She'd stepped into his side, avoiding the Guild members who had encircled him with ease. "We may be joining the Guild, and I appreciate that you consider us comrades, but our little blue bird will be operating with us. He won't need to join any other teams."

"B-Bobbie—!" Eris protested, trying to make her voice heard across the mixture of other voices.

"Oh, it seems you've got quite the bodyguard," Mickey's grin didn't fade, if anything, it grew wider. "You're only makin' me want him for my team that much more, Miss...Bobbie, right?"

"Just Bobbie," replied the bunnysuit-clad woman curtly.

"Bobbie, relax," insisted Robyn. "If we're going to be part of this guild, we should get to know the others better...but all the same, I'm going to refuse. Sorry, but I don't have any interesting in pairing up with _just_ anyone. My taste in men and my taste in teammates are the same. I only want the best of the best." His eyes drifted over to Wendy, who was speaking to a very animated Kinana and Laki. Robyn hadn't expected her to have much in the way of female friends, and was surprised by how well received she was.

Standing at the bottom of the steps which led to the second floor of the Guild were Doranbolt and Macao, who were having a conversation all of their own, separate from the hustle and bustle of the Guild.

"I'm still new to this," Doranbolt said, his narrow eyes meeting Macao's sharp ones. "So what am I supposed to say in this case, Fourth Master? Mission complete?"

"You don't need to be quite so formal about it," replied Macao dismissively, though his face betrayed his good mood. "How was it then? Your first official mission as a member of 'Fairy Tail'?"

"You're asking more 'how did Wendy manage', right?" inquired Doranbolt. Macao tried to protest, but Doranbolt waved it off. "It's fine. I'm new to the Guild, and Wendy was the one who chose this mission, so of course you're going to be concerned." The former Rune Knight leaned against the staircase railing, his arms folded against his chest. "To be perfectly honest, she started out as you'd expect; simply deciding to take on an S-Rank mission wasn't going to snap Wendy out of it. Her night terrors haven't faded — they've lessened, but they're still persistent — and she's still hard on herself. But...she surprised me, spectacularly so."

"Did she now?" repeated Macao, the smile in his voice unable to be repressed. "I wouldn't say I'm surprised myself. She's a strong girl; what she needed was a push. But go on, Mes—Doranbolt. Give me the details."

Doranbolt launched into the story, explaining in detail the involvement of the Robin Hoodlums, the methods they took to stop them, Wendy's emotional turmoil during the ordeal, and how she'd willingly stood up to and fought tooth and nail against Robyn in the end. Doranbolt spared absolutely no detail, from his and Charle's wounds to Wendy's insecurities; Macao was a proper audience member, gasping and grinning at all of the right places.

"Wendy did more than I ever expected of her," Doranbolt continued, sounding far more like a proud father than an employee reporting to his superior. "She took the burden of the entire Kingdom onto her shoulders when she fought Robyn in Crocus, leaving Max and I to handle evacuations...and she came out on top." Doranbolt and Macao turned their attention towards Wendy, who was now trying to cheer up a downcast Charle. Laki and Kinana were still with her, participating in the pity party. "Aren't you glad I didn't wipe her memories now, Macao?"

Macao shrugged, looking sheepish. "I suggested that because I believed it'd be best for her at the time. But it looks like Wendy was able to pull herself back up without needing more us to pull anything drastic. But these wounds don't heal so readily; you're going to keep looking out for her, right?"

"My life is hers," Doranbolt said, as if it was obvious. "But now...I think it's time we discuss the fund divisions."

"Talk funds?" Macao's eyebrows shot up. "What do you mean?"

"We earned 50 Billion Jewels from that mission. The mission that Wendy was key in completing," Doranbolt said pointedly. "I firmly believe that some of that money should go to our team; Wendy should receive the largest dividend — I would say 1 million Jewels is fair for Wendy, as she was the one responsible for resolving the situation as a whole. Max, Charle, and I have all agreed on five hundred thousand; the rest can go to the Guild, but my terms for Wendy maintaining the largest of the cut are non-negotiable."

Macao stared at Doranbolt, his eyes appraising; his face was impassive at first, and Doranbolt worried he would refuse...until the older man placed a hand on Doranbolt's shoulder. "That girl really does mean the world to you, doesn't it? Honestly, I don't feel like what you're asking for is enough...but I feel Wendy would refuse anything higher, wouldn't she?"

"The three of us figured as much as well," agreed Doranbolt, chuckling, Macao removing his hand from the man's shoulder. "Given the situation Wendy is in, I'd feel more comfortable if she had some form of savings. I asked Charle — who was quite reluctant to confide this in me — but Wendy's total earnings from her quests prior to Tenrō Island weren't impressive. I know Lucy was famous for her money troubles, and I'd rather not put Wendy in a similar situation. Squaring away 1 million Jewels should keep her afloat for the foreseeable future."

"You've really planned this one out," Macao noted, impressed. "I wouldn't have argued even if you all had asked for a larger share; 50 Million is a hefty amount, and even taking two million five hundred thousand out of it will hardly dent it. Thanks to you four, we've managed to secure the Guild's prosperity for some time as well." Macao suddenly began to laugh heartily, his shoulders quivering in mirth. Wiping the tears from his eyes, his face turned serious. "Sorry, but I had to laugh. Everything is going completely against what I expected. Between you and me...well, I've told this to Wakaba as well...but I'm not cut out to be the Fourth Master. I know that. Still..." Macao exhaled slowly. "Because of you all — Wendy, Max, Charle, and yourself included — I feel like I can lead Fairy Tail into a new age. Doranbolt...thank you. One of these days, sit and have a drink with me, why don't you?"

"I'll consider it," replied Doranbolt, smiling. "If inebriation doesn't affect my ability to reach Wendy's side."

* * *

**Magnolia Town, Outside Fairy Tail Building**

Utterly ridiculous.

The past week had showcased events that shouldn't be possible. From one moment, the most famous and fastest growing guild of mages - Fairy Tail - was on top of the world. They bested countless villains of mystical and nefarious persuasion. It was even said they had encountered one of the strongest guilds of dark mages, Grimoire Heart, on their very own founding island of Sirius. However, tragedy struck and all who loved the strongest guild in Fiore had their best and brightest snuffed out in a tragic instant of a freak appearance from the nightmare of legend Acnologia himself.

All of it was released to the press within a day of its transpiring. He had been doing an interview when the news hit, and he felt a part of him died inside. To think such cool individuals would just be slaughtered without reason or thought was unforgivable!

But, who is this impassioned man of staunch character and boundless love of all things cool? Why, none other than Jason! The extraordinarily gifted journalist for Sorcerer Magazine! Why, among those in his field, he's the one with the biggest acquisition of Fairy Tail merchandise, pinups, action figures and autographs! There was none that could compare his adoration for such a popular and cool guild!

And now, that's why he was here, outside of their guild hall.

"Fairy Tail...you all...are...!"

He balled his fists, one clenching a freshly printed newspaper of the local Magnolia press as it read clearly: **Fairy Tail Mages announced as Heroes of the Kingdom!**

"...you...you all are...!"

Raising his blonde head, his pointed ahoge gleaming from the Sunlight cast down on his head as he lifted a foot up and kicked the door wide open. Slamming against the frames, he heaved heavily, his face construed into an expression of pupiless outrage.

However...no one seemed to acknowledge he was even there.

"CHUG-CHUG-CHUG-CHUG-CHUG-!" Was the chants that overwhelmed the sound of his rude entry, with a blue haired figure downing a enormously proportioned tankard of alcohol. Astride from him was a bunny suit-dressed woman of voluptuous proportions with blonde hair, fair skin and bright blue eyes that stared with somewhat interest whose expression was vacant apart from it. A pink haired girl sat down from the crowd of mages chanting, sighing as she drank a cup of tea and shook her head.

"Stop cheering him on! Boys his age shouldn't drink, let alone so much! Stop it, I say!"

"As if that's gonna stop him."

Jason's head turned angrily towards the center table, were among the focus of his ire.

The ones who spoke was a recognizable imitation of the adorable mascot of Team Natsu; Charle, the white-haired feline masquerading as Happy's doppelganger! She was in the midst of a condescending almost maternal scolding, albeit distantly as she was dressed in a miniature white blouse with a red tie and a frilled skirt. Standing atop of the table, she was to the left of the less than stellar looking sand magician, Max Alors, who was sipping on a mug of his own.

Lastly, to the left past a slew of people he hardly recognized - or cared to - was the chief perpetrators of this farce!

"I'm feeling better, really," Wendy Marvell spoke in her presumably 'cute' fashion, her body now adorned in a dress she had reported - on good intel - she wore during an excursion into the alternate realm of Edolas. Her hair was affixed into twintails, with each one supported by the popular Neko Ear hair pieces of red coloration. From the neck down she wore a red blouse uniform with an orange bow adorned on her collar while her red sleeves had a pair of beige-outliend white crosses from the elbows to the cuffs along the back. A black mini-skirt with a single white stripe an inch away from the hem, along with a pair of brown dress shoes with blue thigh-high stockings.

"Well, as long as you're sure," Doranbolt, the man of mystery of whom Jason knew the least, but also reviled as being among this 'Team Wendy'. He currently wore a form-fitting sleeveless black top, revealing his muscular arms down to a pair of fingerless black gloves with metal plates wrapped around each of his fingers along with plating flexibly placed over the knuckles of said hand-wrappings. From the waist down he wore a bandoleer of various satchels for who-knows-what in them, with a baggy black pair of pants leading into a pair of black cloth boots. "With all of the attention, I can imagine it could be exhausting. If you ever need a break-"

"Its alright," Wendy shook her head, her smile rueful and her eyes batting away nervously; one that looked at the outraged man still huffing at the front of the guild hall. Everyone else just gave the man the cold shoulder, or were outright ignorant of his existence. As everyone was being merry as a guild Fairy Tail was known to be, eventually Nab Lasaro -the islander dressed mage infamously known for taking forever to choose a mission to go on - walked up to him and tried to wave a hand in front of his face.

"Doranbolt, I recognize that man," Wendy began to say, squinting her eyes while Doranbolt looked ahead, his whole face blanching at the sight of him. "Isn't he-?"

"Hey man, you alright?" Nab inquired as he pressed his face close to the reporter's face. "You got indigestion or-?"

Jason inhaled, rearing his body backwards.

"GET DOWN!"

Doranbolt had nary a split instant to pull Wendy down before the unexpected transpired.

"_YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACKS!" _Jason howled, his head increased in mass several folder larger than his own body as a column of torrential sound waves blew back Nab comically across the room.

Along with him came Charle squeaking out as Max reached out and grasped her, but pulled along with her to crash against tables and people all thrown aside by the mighty gale of nerdy fan rage. Even the bar, which was occupied by criers were sent whisked away - with Eris crying out for her tea while Bobbie maintained a stoic expression as she was flung away.

However, apart from the hat thrown off his head, the blue haired new addition continued to down his drink, with only his clothes being rustled while everyone else was sent flying from the force of comical anger.

"W-What?!" Mickey Chickentiger spoke with bewilderment, trying to haul herself up while the bird atop her head fluttered erratically; her pawed glove brushing her hair as she tried to make out what just hit her. "Are...we under attack?"

"In a way," Warren groaned, his eyes fixing on the man who just bellowed his displeasing arrival to the rest of the mage guild. "Its the paparazzi..."

"Whoa-whoa-whoa," Max waved his hands, hair upright and in a messy bush compared to its usual bowl-cut as he approached the enraged reporter. "What did you call us just now?"

"You _heard me_, Max Alors!" Jason sneered, holding up a newspaper and shoving it into the taller man's face. "Hero of Fiore? Don't make me laugh! You're a walking mockery of what made Fairy Tail great!"

"And who are you, their number one fan?"

"WHAT OF IT?!"

At the retort being an incitement rather than a deterrent, the sandy blonde grimaced and looked over his shoulder towards Charle. She was still picking herself up from the whole endeavor, looking with a pair of condescending eyes at the reporter but not really speaking up. Helplessly he looked to Wendy and Doranbolt who were still a good distance away from the man and getting up from the loud vortex that was unleashed earlier.

Sighing, Max slapped himself on the cheeks and took a step forward towards Jason.

"Just because I'm no Gray Fullbuster, or Natsu Dragneel, doesn't mean I don't have the potential to be one of the greats," Max replied, the reporter glaring doubtfully up at him as he made his pitch. "This was my first S-Class mission. I know by all rights I wasn't qualified - none of us here barring Wendy were even qualified to go to Sirius Island for the Test - but even still, I succeeded. Maybe in time, I can do these missions without breaking a sweat, but I know I have a long ways to go so that can always motivate me to do better!"

Jason pursed his lips, squinting his eyes and gave an expression that looked far more critical than the Sandstorm Mage expected.

"Eh," The dark blonde reporter sideglanced, waving dismissively at him. "3.5; you're barely above passable with that speech."

"C-Come on!"

"I'm still not convinced why my next article shouldn't be written on why this is a last desperate climb of glory for a now has-been guild," He shook his fist threateningly, all the while tears forming in his eyes as his face construed into a look of despair as he continued to raise his voice into the guild hall. "Nothing breaks my heart knowing there isn't an ounce of coolness left in this place. Give it a week, a month, or even half a year and this place will barely have a tenth of the members if not outright be in a shabby shack on the outskirts of Magnolia. What makes you all think you can substitute the people that carried you all on their backs, huh?!"

There was a brief solemn edge to the air of what he spoke. They all knew that, ever since Wendy returned, it was providence that the guild got the funds they needed to stay afloat for awhile. But for how long could they rely on such magnanimous rewards for such treacherous quests?

It was one thing to feel uplifted and proud of a great act such as saving Fiore from an economic crisis, but what were they to do the next time something big and terrifying happened? Could they rely on just Wendy, Doranbolt and Max, even Charle? What did the rest of them have to offer?

"Now hold on," An airy voice came from the bar, a tankard clacking against its counter that was held in dainty soft hand traced from the long-sleeved robe wrapped around the feminine shaped figure. "I may have my reservations about the grandeur of any one organization, let alone a Legal Mage Guild, being cracked up for what it is with or without its vanguard of power players. But," A face looked over the shoulder, smiling halfway while staring curiously at Jason's look of incredulity. "you seem to have already made up your mind, rather than wanting to be convinced, aren't you?"

Being talked so forwardly didn't sit well with the journalist, especially in a guild hall he had come to know and love so fervently.

"And who the Hell are you?!" Jason shouted at the person with a finger that seemed to be much larger than it actually was. "You don't belong here!"

"On the contrary," The person replied, swiveling along the stool to face him fully. A beautiful face framed by a long curtain of teal colored hair that draped down the back and pooled over the bar's surface behind the figure. Curved around the torso, the normally contemporary attire was cut just above the navel, adding to the sex appeal as a clearly brandished teal colored Fairy Tail brand marked the guild's insignia over the belly button. Pointing idly at the exposed waist as proof, the mysterious new member leaned against the counter by the elbows, the robe loosening around his naked shoulder blades to only add to the rookie's sex appeal; one tights-formed leg crossing over the other with high-heel boots gesturing slightly as he regarded the man with a wry grin. "I'm Robyn Lazuli, a bona fide Fairy Tail mage; recently, I might add."

"_Oh,_" Jason flatly replied, his eyes blinking owlishly at the enamoring visage that almost seemed picturesque to his gaze. Darting forward, he seemed to be in multiple places at once, cupping his chin and holding one elbow with his free hand for posterity as he got a gander of his physique, outfit and overall glamor.

Then, he clasped his fingers together and seemed to materialize a notebook with a pen in hand that he clicked readily, "Tell me, what are your sizes?"

"Why?" Robyn asked with a raised brow.

"I want to see if you'd be interested in being a model in Sorcerer Magazine," He admitted, his eyes suddenly alight with a questionable glint over encompassing the normal color, with a broad grin overtaking his face. "It'd be so COOL if you considered-!"

Before he finished his sentence, his body was grappled from behind, a soft but powerful grip. Folded backwards till he was off balance, he found himself pinned to the ground by the throat, and a blade held straight towards his left eye. Looking up aghast he saw a busty Maid-Dressed blonde woman with a wakizashi in hand poised in a vein throbbing hand; similar to the veins threatening to burst along a stoically glaring face poised down at him.

"You'll not objectify my blue bird after speaking such slanderous things about his new home, you bottom feeding scum!" Bobbie snarled, eyes wide and pupils contracted as he raised his hand in preparation to sheathe its edge through his skull.

"Ah! Don't kill him!" Wendy shouted distantly, her sentiment of brief comical horror shared by the rest of the spectating guild mages.

"Yeah, that'd be bad. Think of the headlines: Fairy Tail Mage kills reporter for suggestions of legal promiscuity!" Max intoned with a chuckle, much to Charle's disgust.

At hearing their words, Bobbie halted her actions, - causing Doranbolt's gut impulse to keep himself from lunging to restrain her - and looked around as if taking stock of her surroundings. She looked over at Robyn, his face assuming a disappointed pout with his lips forming a fish-like sputter towards her. Her face blushed, and she released her hold on the smaller man's neck and helped him up to his feet, blade still in hand; before she sent it back into its holding place with a flash of light.

"W-Whoa!" Jason gaped, his eyes now affixed on Bobbie's person. "I thought you were hired help-"

"Not incorrect."

"-but you must be a new Fairy Tail mage too!" He finished despite her quip, looking around at her bunny costume attire for a mark.

Answering the unspoken question, Bobbie casually pulled at her bunny suit's top to reveal more cleavage - much to the squeaking shock of Wendy as she covered her eyes and Charle's mortified spurt - to point out the top of her left breast was marked in an amethyst colored Fairy Tail insignia.

"Oh, _very nice_ placement!" Jason scribbled down, eyeing it up with an enthusiastic grin before looking at the hand that sent the blade away. "So, tell me, what's your name and what do you and your sexy friend do?"

"He's male, you know."

"And that matters _why?_" He answered without skipping a beat.

Sighing, Bobbie explained with a deadpan expression, "I'm an Assassin Requip Mage, Bobbie Blondes. My partner, as you've heard his name already, is a Magical Tool craftsman and a Dragon Slayer-"

"_WHATDIDYOUJUSTSAY-?!_"

From his sputtering of disbelief came a shower of spit that caked Bobbie's face. Instantly her face was alight with throbbing veins and wide-eyes of rage. Her maid costume disappeared in a flourish of light and replaced with a shadowy garb that encompassed her whole curvaceous being. With a shadowy blade in hand, she rushed in to cut the man down only for him to duck at the last second; with his ahoge cut in a clean half.

"S-Sorry for spitting in your face-"

"You _will_ be sorry, you disgusting man!" Bobbie howled as she rushed at him across the guild hall, the journo zipping back and forth in a display of surprising agility as he avoided the near-death slashes that cut just his shirt and pants with not a sign of blood being shed.

"T-This is good, though! You're quite nimble, and use a rarely used Requip Magic with such skill!" He commented, penning it down all while deftly avoiding her attacks within an inch of his life, much to the amazement and shock of the mages surrounding him. "Not an Erza but, maybe, you too can model in Sorcerer Magazine with Robyn? He'd be in our Sexy Male line-up while you'd be a definite contender for being among the most attractive models in the Legal Mage community!"

Stopping short of connecting with his neck during a certainly fatal trip, Bobbie's face turned from rage to stoic once again. A glint of interest glowed in her blue eyes and she asked in a soft voice, "Would I get paid for this work?"

"You'd both be paid for your work," Jason replied with a straight face, unafraid of certain death.

In a beautiful flourish of light and movement, Bobbie returned to her bunny suit, her head nodding with understanding, "Write up a contract, and then we'll see."

"Excellent!" The reporter gleefully said, his movements becoming iconically erratic once more. "That'd be so-so-so COOOOOOOOOOL!"

"...what even is happening?" Max inquired with a hunched over look of exasperation.

"I think the new members are outshining you," Charle teased with his face twitching with annoyance. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll do just fine."

"You're just saying that..."

"That's well and good," The reporter nodded, his face becoming serious as he looked away from them, turning back towards Wendy. "Two Slayers, cute, and fashionable. A new Requip Mage is also a bonus. But, I doubt that'd be enough to make this guild survive. I'm still unconvinced this isn't a mere buffer to an inevitable decline."

"That's true and all," A sage voice came from the disaster zone of the guild hall, bringing the reporter to look towards its source. Macao Conbolt, flanked by his partner and old friend Wakaba Mine, strutted forth with his S shaped necklace jingling over his black undershirt, his white coat with blue outlines flourishing over his body as he kept his hands pocketed in his brown pants. "You're forgetting that our guild is home to all sorts of unused talent. We've become complacent, and truly over-reliant on our brothers and sisters and our mutual father to pull the weight of so much expectations. If we can muster up our strength and push forward despite our losses, I'm sure we can truly show the world that we have more to offer than being just the leftovers you may think of us as."

"Okay, that's a 4.5!" Jason replied with a brighter grin, jabbing a finger at the man who was currently the new Guild Master. "Well, its not perfect, but I guess that's just what happens when change is in the air. I'm not sure if you will actually step up to the challenge. You have to admit, the world knows you've weakened considerably. A few new additions and a big win isn't enough."

"It is just the beginning," Another new voice spoke, bringing the journo's attention. A smaller figure of almost magical beauty that stole his breath away. With wide eyes he saw slender arms sway freely over a free-form fitted dress of viridescent coloration. With its simplicity came the overlapsing belts that held it aloft, her feet skipping away as she traipsed up towards him. With sharp ears jutting from her luscious long locks of strawberry hue, pink eyes looked up at him with a strange agelessness but also held a sense of confident that bolstered her words. "Can't you feel it? Just as this guild is the focal point of great change, thrust upon it without knowing it, so we too will help catalyze the the events that will shape the rest of the world. Do not underestimate the strength of even the smallest drop of rain; for it will have the power to move the faces of mountains if enough pressure is applied."

"That's right!" Bisca cried out, the cowboy hat toting mage said with a fist pump, joined in by her significant other in Alzack as they shared expressions of excitement. "We're no pushovers when it comes to magic. I know we'll find new ways to invigorate ourselves with this newfound inspiration given to us."

"I won't waste this time given to us by Wendy, Doranbolt, Charle and Max," Laki said personally, placing a hand on her chest as the amethyst haired, bespectacled girl spoke passionately. "I will soar higher than the tops of the tallest trees! That's my goal as a Mage from this point on!"

"And from what I've heard, the Shadow Gear boys have been busying themselves training," Wakaba mentioned with a grin, his pipe smoking passively as he nodded to Macao. "And your boy is already nose deep into Fire Magic books you had lying around. I'm sure he'll follow in your footsteps to make Natsu proud, no?"

"Wh-Why wouldn't he make ME proud?"

"Cause you're not as _cool_ as Natsu."

"H-Hey now-!"

"Yeah, just you wait," Mickey turned around, punching one large glove into the palm of another. "I'm going to get my time to shine in the Sun: the Demon Princess will not be looked down on!"

"I'll try my best too," Vijeeter Ecor danced awkwardly, his trademark magic moving with his black-clad silver-highlighted body as he thought about what he could do to maximize his already existing talents. "I won't fall behind..."

P_ainting things with greater flair and eloquence, _Reedus thought to himself, wondering about his style of spellcasting as he saw the others become more invigorated. _Simplicity has always weakened my creations. Perhaps I should focus on things of much more complexity? That can work, with time..._

"I-I'll go on missions," Nab proclaimed, causing a loud pause in the air around him. Sweating nervously, he raised a fist and shouted out loud. "H-Hey! I really will do it now!"

"Wow," The dark blonde man intoned, mouthing it out as he was truly held aback. Looking at the faces of each Fairy Tail mage, it just occurred to him just how dismissive hew as to the resolve of these mages.

Clearing his throat, he looked to the pink-haired girl and he saw her levitate into the air, now surrounded by a pale blue glow. Pulling off her left gauntlet, she showed the crimson mark of Fairy Tail on her palm, contrasting with her brightly pinkish hue or the current aura she was embalmed with.

"I believe this Guild will do great things. It turned my blue bird into one that sings confidently and with hope rather than one of melancholy and despair. Please give them your best wishes, and take to heart what you've seen this day, Jason. This I ask of you," The Elf requested in the most maternal manner one wouldn't expect from such a youthful appearing person.

Tears formed in the reporter's eyes.

He remembered the days he spent in the past, where he'd make regular visits to the guild hall to do interviews and inquiries to the mages of Fairy Tail. Even at a young age he had known just how popular they are, and the amazing feats they've accomplished. Just seeing them in person was so emotionally overwhelming each and every time he couldn't keep it contained. The loss of such people; no, his friends that he had lost, was devastating.

Streaming down his face, biting down on his lip, he tried to sniff back as he kept a brave face on towards Eris. Looking over to the happily smiling Wendy, the half-grinning serious expression on Doranbolt and the lackadaisical look of resignation on Max while Charle looked on with approval brought his heart to thump in his chest with admiration.

"Yes," He nodded, raising a pink-sleeved arm to wipe away his face as he did all he could to hold back the full outburst he was almost assuredly about to unleash. "I'm sorry, everyone, for saying such awful things. I...I just miss them, is all..."

"We miss them too," Max replied, standing more upright as he put his hair back into its bowl-cut order. "But that doesn't mean we can't do our best to pick up where they left off. Sometimes, stories end, but Fairy Tail has yet to have its end, really."

"That...was a much better one," Jason intoned with a chuckling sniffle. Standing upright, he turned towards the whole of the guild, staring to Wendy with an outstretched hand for her to grasp. "Congratulations on a mission well done, Wendy Marvell! I hope you, your new team and your guild continue to being the _coolest_ you can be!"

The shy girl looked a bit sheepishly around at her friends. When they gave her nods of affirmation, she reached out and grasped his hand, the two sharing a smile of encouragement towards each other.

For the next handful of erratic minutes, Jason sought to write his wrongs by literally writing up interviews about each of the mages he had overlooked so callously before. He learned their names, their magicks and what they plan to do to improve on themselves. Each of them had their own fascinating story to tell, and personalities that made him fall in love with the guild all over.

He very much enjoyed this newly formed 'Team Wendy', even though he didn't think much of her contemporaries. Doranbolt's Direct Line magic was indeed very compelling, but his attitude could stand to be more approachable so he advised him to smile a bit more genuinely and not act so abrasively to strangers. Max he gave more criticisms on how he worded speeches and not to think too hard or force them out if he had nothing compelling to say. By Charle, he was lectured in return more than he was able to ask questions, much to his chagrin.

Wendy herself...he felt her pain.

It was daunting, to imagine embracing oblivion with the whole of her family only to be captured by fear and then swept away, barely clinging to life. He now realized what kind of courage it had to take to take such a dangerous mission, even when she was in no place emotionally or mentally to take it. But she did, and despite the odds, she succeeded. He found that she was far more cooler than he had ever credited her for.

Wrapping up the interviews, Jason waved them off, turning on his heel to exit the building with his spirits high and his heart set on doing a complete one eighty to what he had pictured going in.

_Natsu...Makarov...everyone. You can rest easy,_ The reporter thought with a smile as he headed to the exit. _Your family is doing alright. And I can't wait to see what they'll do in the future!_

Just before he could reach the entrance to the guild hall, he stopped himself.

A pair of silhouettes were walking into this sacred space, with hoods overlapping their heads and in black fatigues. They had a strange, eerie presence but also something vaguely recognizable; at least, to the taller of the two.

Entering in, Jason blinked, wondering if he was hallucinating or not. As they passed him by, the rest of the guild that was in the midst of cleaning up and also in good rapport thanks to the reporter's interviews - along with Robyn and Bobbie's modeling deals proposed - they too recognized what looked to be relative strangers standing in the guild hall.

Macao, being on the floor, squinted his eyes and cleared his throat, "Ahem...can we help you?"

The taller one flinched at being called out. The shorter one nudged, a harsh whisper ushered to it.

Wendy looked over from her table, her eyes trailing up the taller cloaked individual as it spoke, with words that made her eyes widen and her mouth hang open.

"Is this guild still accepting new members?"

It couldn't be, could it?

After all this time?

No, there had to be a rational explanation. Last time she heard this voice it was-

"We are," Macao intoned, looking the pair up and down. "Why so mysterious? If you want to be examined for mage candidacy I think it'd be proper that you introduce yourselves to us."

Again, the taller one fell silent and a sharper nudge from behind made it form a grunt. As Wendy left the table and walked over, the taller figure reached up a pair of hands and pulled at the hem of the hood, unfolding it and revealing a frock of blue spiky hair. A single italic tattoo ran over the right side of an angular but strong cheeked face, with dark eyes looking at the current master of the guild with a sense of resolve but sadness all the same. When Wendy saw it, she knew it wasn't who she thought it was, but it still bore significant memory all the same.

One that was jogged fiercely as he spoke in front of a startled Jason.

"I am Jellal Fernandes," He announced himself.

"And I," The shorter of the two pulled back a hood, being less recognizable to the Sky Dragon Slayer, but still eerily familiar in a way she couldn't place a finger on it. She had a tomboyish cut of bubblegum pink hair - as opposed to Natsu's light-reddish mane - with a golden-winged head piece wrapped around her temples and back of her head revealed with her cutely cherub shaped face with green eyes staring harder forward. "Am Meredy, his companion."

"We'd like to officially pledge our support to the Fairy Tail Guild, if you'd have us," Jellal proclaimed, bowing his head as he spoke, in a clearly pained tone. "_Please._"

At this moment, Wendy had no idea what to make of this. It was one thing to run into a recent nemesis-turned-ally, but this?

What happened for this to occur?

"JELLAL FERNANDES?!" Jason's voice let out a high pitched shriek before his entire visible opacity turned into a comical sheet of white that overlapped with his clothes. With a pair of bulging eyes and outstretched arms, he fell over and landed with an audible clunk as if he was a lifeless statue.

"Is...is he dead?" Max inquired.

"Holy shit, I think you killed him with your presence alone," Meredy commented with a few blinks by his side.

"Ah...that's...well," Jellal intoned with a visible grimace.

"He's not dead," Macao discouraged with a wave of his hand, stepping down to help the journo up and laid him onto a chair by a table. Sighing, he looked to the man, stroking his chin as he did. "Well, I'm not sure what to say but...last time I heard from the previous master weren't you locked up for what you did to the Council?"

"Yeah, that's what I remember too," Wakaba nodded, his pompadour bouncing with him as he addressed the pair with inteest. "I'm not sure about the girl, but what's your story? Why did you come here of all places? Are we in trouble housing you?"

"There's no trouble, unless I'm not wanted here," Jellal hastily spoke, his eyes looking up at them, but still holding a sense of anguish in them. "If you rather I'm not here I'll make sure you never see me again."

"Don't," Wendy intoned, making the man jump in surprise. Looking over at the cobalt haired girl, he had vague memories of seeing her during the Nirvana incident. Despite recognizing him for a different man entirely, she welcomed him just as much as the rest did after they had collaborated to halt the plot of Master Brain of the Oracion Seis. Now, she held a hand out and grasped his cloak, her eyes looking pleadingly up at him past Meredy's shocked expression. "Stay, Jellal. And please, explain why."

Looking around at all of the faces that looked at him with wonderment and bewilderment all the same, he felt his air leave his nostrils in a sigh.

"First of all," Meredy raised a black gloved hand, pushing Wendy away with a half-hearted shove before looking around at the others. "He doesn't have the whole story. I do. So listen up, and I'll tell you how this all went down...and why we decided to help you all out."

* * *

**A/N:  
LastationLover5000: **_This chapter was a very, very nice change of pace from our normal ones. Given the first few were depressing and the several after that were all focused on the arc at hand, a relaxing, character-driven chapter like that was just what my co-author and I needed, I'd say. Writing Robyn and company in a more causal setting is interesting, since, while Robyn can relax — and drink things he shouldn't be — and Eris will go with any situation, Bobbie just won't. Their interactions with the Guild from this point on will be interesting; Robyn is down to experiment, but he doesn't fully believe in Wendy's spiel at all. My friend's section was amazing; I knew I couldn't write for Jason, but he did it wonderfully, and made it an emotional section all at once. But then..Jellal and Meredy of all people arrive, asking for the Guild to take them in! You'll know why...next week! We'll see you then!_

**Demod20**: _And that's the end! Wow what a fun distraction. From Robyn and his two besties joining the Guild, to Jason's antics of doubt and encouragement to Jellal and Meredy's arrival?! So much to unpack with this. I loved what my co-author did with detailing Robyn, it definitely hit the nail on the head. He's not 100% on board, but he's definitely interested to see why this girl fought so hard if she didn't believe in something so strongly. He'll play nice, for now, and see where this guild takes him; with Bobbie sticking by him no matter what and Eris joining him for her own reasons. I loved playing around with Jason's comic relief, but he also got in some surprisingly emotional pieces here. In the end, Jason was such a huge fan because he almost knew all of the 'main cast' like family. To see them go like that must have been devastating to him, so naturally his criticism would be the harshest cause it comes from a place of love. Really enjoyed writing that. That, and of course we have Jellal's despondent arrival with Meredy. That in of itself is a whole story that'll be unveiled...next chapter, believe it or not! See you all in a week from now _:P


	13. Restart from Zero

**Chapter 13 - ****Restart from Zero**  
**Written by Demod20 and LastationLover5000**

* * *

It had been a long time coming.

Ultear Milkovich had thought long and hard what it meant to continue existing beyond a revenge that meant nothing. Through a chance encounter with the enchanted waters of the southern sea by Tenrō Island she bore firsthand the truth behind it all. How her mother wailed in despair, wishing she had never agreed to give her daughter away and only found solace in training the two children she saved from Deliora's rampage. Her rage had dissipated, and all that was left was guilt. She tried to make amends by restoring the tree of the island, giving Fairy Tail a fighting spirit renewed and aiding their victory over Master Hades and the rest of Grimoire Heart.

However, in being found out by Meredy about the truth of what she had done to her home, she tried to make the ultimate penance by sacrificing her own life and telling her to live. Against her wishes she was saved from death and told that she couldn't keep living on without her, regardless of what the Leader of the Kin Purgatory had done. She agreed that they both had to find a means to keep on living, past their sins of what they did or tried to accomplish.

But she knew Meredy was blameless. Her misguided ambition of destroying Gray Fullbuster and attempted murder of his fellow Fairy Tail mages, was done because of how she spun the tale of events of the past. Facts obscured she didn't know until way after the event had neared its end.

It wasn't a day's journey via boat that she had bore witness to something that chilled her to the bone. A black winged abomination, surging towards the famed isle and in under an hour, let loose a voluminous roar that annihilated it before her very eyes. The distant vista she could see was now a torrential swathe of bucking seawater, and the magic one could practically sense from this range was now obliterated.

A week later, she had learned of the awful truth: only one had survived, namely Wendy Marvell. The rest were nowhere to be found, and though the Council would likely have cursory glances, only those close to the guild would continue the search in vain hope. Left alone, the guild would surely disband and she would have nothing but blame to haul on her own two shoulders for abandoning them to their unpredictable fate; something that never would've occurred if Grimoire Heart hadn't come to Tenrō Island in the first place.

Despite this, victory was rewarded by the crown royalty of Fiore, and a band of infamous international thieves "Robin's Hoodlums," were taken down. It stunned her when she read the paper, even Meredy was surprised the assumed most underpowered Slayer could accomplish such a feat. It had only been a month but the fortune for what she written off as a doomed guild was now recovering, by their own strength. And what was she doing? Living in the shadows, looking over her shadow and doing her best to make up for what she had done by crushing Dark Mages with Meredy wherever she found them.

It wasn't enough, though. Even if she brought down every criminal empire, every terrorist group and squashed every occult assemblage of dark mages, she'd never achieve true lasting change. A never ending war without end in sight, and none of it positive enough to undo what wrongs she's committed. All the while people she had ruined are either gone forever, or still paying the price for her actions. Much like Meredy and-

In a breaking of a daze, Ultear's eyes widened with clarity. There was someone left in this world that she can help! An almost relieved smile broached her visage as the man's face breached her mind's eye and returned to her thoughts.

There was only one way to make amends, truly...even if Meredy didn't agree to it, she had to.

She wouldn't find peace otherwise.

* * *

**The Magic Council Chambers, Fiore National Branch**

Inconceivable.

That was how absurd the situation was to the recently assigned Chairman, Gran Doma. The man had come from an auspicious background as most Councilors had. Since a young age he was an adept in the understanding and application of magical spells, even more-so at utilizing many different types of tools. What made him a preferred successor was his outspoken zeal towards the corruption within the current system, and how no accountability is being held against those in power or those who were considered 'useful' among the Legal Guilds of Mages across Ishgar; moreso in Fiore than others across the vast continent.

But now, holding a meeting after the conclusion of a matter they had failed to control themselves, was so soon after the complete annihilation of the Fairy Tail's original home along with the bulk of its core members that ranked from A up to S Class. The blow had an echo, and an ongoing problem he was attempting to rectify was instead solved by its sole survivor - Wendy Marvell - along with a negligible member and one agent Doranbolt; an agent that had become disillusioned since his abandonment of duty since the Tenrō Island's destruction; had just solved the issue all on their own.

Once seated, the faces weren't recognizable as the last time he made a bold proclamation it came with a rush of just nods and hearsay. Now, he had to remind himself of those who these people were since he had his wind sucked out of his proverbial sails of justice.

Jurius hailing from Bellum, a vassal state of the Pergrande Kingdom, was a middle aged man with an angular face with crestfallen expression across his eyes, matching his greying black hair that swung outward like that of a water fowl; his clothes were adorned of a blue collared suit-jacket and a white overcoat. He sat to the mid-right from Gran's perspective.

Aisus Kool was a chilling individual from the monarchy of Iceberg, her appearance bearing that of a frigid doll of a human rather than a normal weathered person you'd expect of the Council's seating. Long white lashes, snowflake adorned hair that was formed into a pair of icicle shaped braids and a fur-coat wrapped over a curvaceous body, she looked to be the youngest of the newly formed Council and sat opposite of Jurius.

Org sat to Gran's immediate right, the only one who survived the dismissal of the previous Council whose own origins hail from Bosco. The wizened man, whose right blinded eye was shut permanently made up for having his left eye shift keenly from person to person across from him; noticeably looking at the angry stare that came from Grand Doma himself.

Estus Mar'ah, sitting to the immediate left of Gran, was an elf priestess hailing from the Kingdom of Seven Alliances (also known shorthand as the Kingdom of Seven). Fair in every regard, from her black hair complementing her porcelain-like soft cherub face and amethyst eyes, the knife-shaped ears peeking out of her long locks that were about as long as her dress of vermilion and sapphire colors, with various jewels sewn into the silken fabric.

Olivier Vandenheim sat to the opposite of Gran Doma, wearing what looked like a small hat upon her head of luscious blonde locks. Despite encroaching into her early forties, the woman's suggestive beauty was only enhanced by her more mature age. She was a curvaceous person was barely held back by the stylish corset-styled top that revealed the top of her breasts while having a short-sleeved coat she had half-on-half-off her body. Knee high boots folded confidently one over the other, long-sleeved finger-less gloves thrummed melodically over the table, much to the annoyance of those around her - more than her pompous attitude and constant reminder she hails from a prodigious family from the Pergrande Kingdom.

To the left of Olivier was Quarius Quantus, a squat man with large green-goggles that accentuated his eyes to be much larger than they actually were. With a deeply tanned complexion with an ashen spirals for a mustache and a full mop of hair, his bobs and doodads hanging from his jacket made him look less like a Councilor and more like a professor at a tinkerer university.

To the right of Olivier was Magnus Mercury, a monstrously proportioned man among his contemporaries; and one of the Ten Wizard Saints. Deep red hair spiked out in a fray, the Councilor coat hung loosely over his muscular personage with his military-like uniform of blue beneath rolled up to show his massive arms. Chosen due to his excellent dedication to the plights of people affected by magical afflictions both domestic and international from his own homeland - a minor isle off the coast of the Kingdom of Seven named Kalypse. Due to his recognition and recent promotion, he was given the rare opportunity to help deign the important laws and carrying out the will of the law of magic across the land.

With such a colorful assortment of replacements to the old guard, there was an unsettling quiet that was created by the lateness of Gran Doma's arrival; and his subsequent stewing as he glared at anyone who gave him even the oddest gesture or made the smallest of noises.

"Ah, what a grim atmosphere we have," Org spoke, stroking his beard as he looked to Gran, this time unafraid of his ire as he conjured an understanding of what might have happened. "I thought we would have some good news to speak of, for a change. After all, in scarcely a week's time, so much has changed but quite a lot for the better," He narrowed his working eye at Gran, intoning with a bit more seriousness. "Or, is there something we haven't been made aware of as of yet, Chairman?"

The head of the Council over all Magic in the land grimaced harder than any of the gathered had thought possible. An armored hand formed into a clinking fist on the table top, while the other clenched the serpent-headed stave lying against his impressive seat.

"As of yesterday evening, the leader of the international gang of bandits who have stolen a gross sum of treasury from many nations in Ishgar - the eponymous Generous Robin - has been released from our custody. He is now a free man, and all charges against him are to be dropped."

His grave words brought a look of shock on the one-eyed mage, his tiny bird - who normally was silent atop his bald head - began to chirp with an equally wide-eyed expression that matched his human master's. Quarius blanched, his eyes seeming to press against the green tinted glass of his goggles. Jurius looked more worried than usual, hanging his head with depressed submission. Magnus looked positively livid as his hair began to gain a fiery quality as tongues of flame ebbed off his body with his teeth bared angrily towards the Chairman.

To which he summarily stood up with his hands slamming against the table, his voice a bellowing organ that resonated within the hallowed mostly unoccupied chamber.

"And why the Hell is he free?!" He gestured around, looking to the otherwise calmer members who had much more reserved expressions that intoned no real change in their dispositions; apart from Olivier's perpetual smugness, all of them had calculated, cool masks of indifference or patience that he didn't have. "Aren't we the makers of law and order?! What good are we if we just let any criminal escape without justice being met?!"

"Complications arose and, for all of my power, I had to abide if this recently reborn council is to survive another fortnight without scrutiny and righteous prejudice," Gran Doma replied evenly, not reprimanding the hot-blooded man in the slightest, as his anger peered beyond any one person that presided around him. The stave in his hand rattled and everyone could feel the rage frothing off him like tangible heat; along with a visible ray of grey-tinted aura that broached to the surface, rivulet-ting his hat and high-collared cloak. "I shall explain, so for the meantime, take a seat young Magnus."

Hissing, the flames died upon his head and the largest of the group sat down noisily with a grunt, crossing his arms over his barely restrained chest as he scowled at the table with a feeling of powerlessness.

"As I was saying," Gran Doma continued, he himself having yet to rein in his foul mood as he continued to speak with nothing less than barely constrained ire. "The Generous Robin was, surprisingly, related to a powerful mage family. At news of his arrest being made public, it was likely his likeness was passed around across the continent at word of his trial and sentencing being made imminent. After a matter of barely a day's passing, I was given an..._ultimatum_...by the relative of the criminal."

"An ultimatum?" Org inquired with a narrowed glance. "What do you mean of this? And why speak so vaguely?"

"He's doing so to ensure the discretion this mystery family has bought with the bandit leader's freedom," Aisus answered, the icicle braided woman turning coolly to look at Gran Doma, and waited several seconds. Seeing that he had neither refuted or denied this statement, she blinked and then looked to Org directly. "It seems we are contending with a rather powerful force if our Chairman insists on keeping tight-lipped."

"Are we truly so gutless as to bow to the whims of a single noble family?" Olivier inquired, the fancifully dressed woman opposite of the Chairman waved a hand dismissively, her eyes staring at him and the other two with a grin. "Just out with it, Chairman. I doubt any of us are stupid enough to overturn your decision just because you were in a tight spot. I think we, being new this position as you are apart from Org, have the right to know so we don't harbor any doubt that you were doing this for the greater good; unlike your predecessor's lack of judgement involving Etherion, hm?"

Gran Doma closed his eyes, grunting long-windedly as his grip intensified on his stave.

"We shouldn't pry," Estus began to say maternally, her eyes looking sympathetically to the older man adorned with a cowboy hat. "This was a difficult decision that was made; however, if you wish to confide with us, now is as good as time as any."

"Bah! We are wasting our time on this when we have many other issues to discuss," Quarius sneered, rolling his enlarged eyes within his optics as the shorter man patted the table with a high pile of papers in his other hand. "There are so many legality issues with mages using their magic in public spaces we have to condone or ban. With the rising number of magic users, and the drafting kingdoms have made to those not affixed to a guild rising, its only a matter time till we-"

"Don't derail the subject, little man," Magnus snarled, his face angrily glaring at the shorter councilor as he raised a fist that sparked threateningly around it. "I will not let the release of an international menace like the Generous Robin be let go unchallenged. If you don't like it, I'll gladly introduce you to the exit-!"

"You dare challenge me, punk?!" The shorter ashen-haired man rebuked, standing upright on his seat so that he was almost eye-level with the massive man. "I'll show you where the exit to life is, when I'm through with-"

_CLANG!_

The pommel of a stave slamming into the floor brought the two's argument to a close, bringing their attention to the Chairman's angry expression. It was enough that even the hot-blooded fury of Magnus felt unsettled, and he recoiled himself back into his arm-crossed posture while the squat Quarius sat back down with a harrumph.

"I will divulge information, but it must never leave this room. Do you understand?" He inquired gravely. When he saw not a one batted an eye at this, he leaned back, sighing as a wave of minor relief was escaping his person; but only slightly, as he began to unravel the mystery to his guarded manner of explanation.

"Do any of you know of the name Lazuli?" He asked simply.

A range of expressions filled the Council. Some looked completely baffled as to what that had to do with anything, while others ranged to ignorance of this knowledge. Others, however, had much more cognitive awareness that this had everything to do with the Chairman's discretion. Estus, Jurius and Oliver - whose passively confident expression switching to one of shock - at the mere mention of that name.

"I know only of their offhanded relations they had with the previous Chairman," Org answered honestly, noticing the facial changes in his more knowing colleagues, but chose to speak from his own perspective. "They are a family of Holder Magic craftsmen, capable of amazing feats of divine engineering and innovative artisans of varying kinds. The Council has requisitioned their services from time to time, from what I know."

"It goes much deeper than that, sadly," Gran Doma continued, his eyes closing hard as he grimly finished. "Since its founding, the Council has had a hand in the affairs of politics across every known area of the world; in exchange, each nation has offered boons up to us. Joya gave us the foundation of what would later be formed as the order of Rune Knights, The Kingdom of Seven endowed with us a mass amount of servants for our employees to stem from, and many candidates for magical assistance in our endeavors. And from the Pergrande Kingdom came the most enigmatic of the nobility, the Lazuli; the very same ones that had crafted our original headquarters of ERA, and the superweapon of Etherion."

Now Quarius's eyes shattered his goggles at that fact being mentioned, along with a startled croak, "T-That was made b-by them?!"

"This isn't good. This is worse than I feared," Jurius lamented aloud, his face placed into his spindly hands.

"Not only of that, but there are apparently many other weapons of mass destruction, secrets beyond our scope that was made known to me from the current head of the Lazuli family," Gran Doma informed, gravely speaking as he addressed the shocked congregation. "Ones that he'd threaten to inform the world of our hand creating it, would I refuse to release his son, Robyn Lazuli."

It all made sense to Org.

The suddenness of his release so soon after announcing his capture, felt too perfect. Who else but family would rush to the rescue, especially ones of such clandestine presence within a powerful nation such as the Pergrande Kingdom. Blackmail made it the easiest way of keeping the identity of their child - a blemish to their own credibility - from reaching the ears of the public, while simultaneously holding the keys of power over their heads.

Magnus Mercury looked absolutely furious. Org feared he may immolate here and now, and rush off half-cocked across the continent at this being made known.

"I...uh...I see," Quarius stammered, withdrawing his goggles as he eyed sadly his ruined spectacles from his own comical antics. "This...is awful."

"The arrogance of that man!" Olivier steamed, slamming a fist on the table with a look unbecoming of the beautiful woman. "How could he abuse his power such as this?! I'll expose his treachery at the next ball, and then he'll-"

"Did you not hear the Chairman?" Aisus inquired rhetorically, the icy woman locking a dagger-filled gaze at the Pergrande councilor with a cold anger. "If you do that, then our renewed Magic Council is finished. The existence of Etherion was barely tolerated, and with its use abused by our own makes it clear the world will not allow us to have that much power. If they knew of any other weapons, decommissioned or not, that still exist to this day...all of our heads will roll!"

"Tch!" Olivier seethed, turning her face to look back at the Chairman. "I expected more from you, Chairman! What point was in our being a more hardened, just order if we are overturned by the first sign of extortion sent our way?!"

"What would you have me do? Render all the power of authority we have inert once more for good? To what end other than personal satisfaction?! I do this not for the sake of vendettas, but for the bigger picture," He replied, closing his eyes and sighing, trying to rein in his own temper as he spoke a bit quieter, but still just as determined. "We have to choose our battles. There will come a time when we may act, but now is not the day. Not for a bandit child."

Olivier growled but eventually relented, her smug smile rearmed as she began to laugh aloud incredulously.

"It angers me that one of my own countrymen, let alone a fellow noble, has the audacity to use such a card on us fledgling Councilors...but oh well. Its not like today's going to get any worse-"

A firm knock rattled the entry to the Council Chambers, succinctly cutting her off in mid-dismissal.

The Council became silent for a few moments. Who was at the door? The guards stationed outside were given no orders that were of pressing report at this time.

"We are the middle of a meeting, please wait until our business has concluded-"

Gran Doma's words weren't even finished conveying his disapproval to the unannounced guest when a sudden violent crack penetrated the barrier. Two enormous doors swung wide, slamming into the immaculate walls till they were all but knocked off their hinges. Its source, came from a familiar face; one that Org recognized instantly, and whose likeness all seated knew immediately whom it belonged to.

"Y-You-!" The one-eyed Councilor spoke aghast, standing upright immediately in alarm.

"So nice to see one of you made it to the rebirth of the Magic Council," A feminine voice proclaimed, as sultry as it was threatening in its most casual form. Strutting in with one thigh sliding across the other, a voluptuous frame that was bound in a skin-tight suit of armor-woven fabric, a pair of armored vambraces wrapped around each forearm matching the metal shin guards she had adorned. The black haired woman was bereft of her lipstick, but shown every bit of confidence upon her proud lips as dark red eyes stared ahead while holding a glass sphere under one such arm.

And upon further entry in, they'd see the hallway behind them, full of bloodied and mangled bodies that moaned behind her in Rune Knight attire.

"Ultear Milkovich, of all people, showed herself in the flesh on the one meeting I decided to be here in person?" Olivier inquired incredulously, her smile rueful as she shook her head as she looked away. "I really need to keep my mouth shut, less Fate will smite me for tempting it..."

"You're a bold one," Magnus stated, his hair alight with flame as was most of his skin. Standing upright, glowing pupiless eyes glared at her as his Aura released a sweltering heat that filled the whole of the chamber; nervously making his contemporaries brace themselves at the sight of his fury made manifest in his trademark magic: Mantle. "To think I'd have all of this frustration, practically boiling over, and someone so contemptible shows oneself before me? Providence is at hand, and now you'll be unfortunate enough to cross me when I'm feeling _this angry!_"

"Wait, Councilor Mercury!" Org raised his voice, hand outstretched to the fiery man revving himself for a fight against the woman. "That woman is a Saint, and one behind the destruction of ERA! None of us here are a match for her-"

"That has yet to be decided!"

As he bellowed, the man leaped forth, swinging a fiery fist towards her face. And, but in a flash, an orb met his knuckles grinding against it with just as much ferocity. So shocked at his blow being parried that he failed to see her leg whipping beneath his eyes-

-crashing into his midsection and sending him flying into the far wall with a powerful impact that shattered the windows and rattled the confines of the interior. The flames died off his person as he slid down its surface, lurching forward as he held his chest and grimacing at her from the distance separating them.

"I didn't come here to fight," Ultear announced, lowering her toned leg down, flipping her hair as the orb returned to her grasp. "If I wanted to harm you, I wouldn't have bothered coming inside and brought this whole structure to ruin over your heads."

"Oh? A funny way of showing it," Olivier remarked, folding her hands as she leaned confidently back into her seat as her eyes met the younger woman's. "Do share, cause we're all quite keen on either escaping from or capturing you."

"_Escaping is preferable,_" Councilor Quantus muttered under his breath, with Jurius nodding fearfully in agreement.

"I've come because, unlike my former colleague can attest, you all claim to stand for something better than the previous generation of councilors. You all stand for justice, peace, and order without dragging in petty grievances and agendas into the fold," She began to say, her eyes now affixed to the glaring Gran Doma. "For instance, Chairman Gran Doma, you wouldn't let an innocent man stay within a prison for eternity for a crime he did not commit?"

At this, the Chairman immediately knew of whom she meant. Ever since he had taken up the burden of command in such a recent span of time he had heard of the claim of 'memory loss' for their most wanted criminal, Jellal Fernandes. A Wizard Saint and former Councilor, the man was incredibly dangerous yet he gave himself up with no resistance. Whether this was part of some convoluted plot to exclude himself of blame, or if there was more to the story, he couldn't say and didn't care at the time upon his incarceration.

"You'll pardon my disbelief, since we know who you speak of," Org spoke on the Doma's behalf, stroking his beard as he eyed the woman keenly for any sign of deceipt. "Given how the both of you were behind EA's destruction, with the man masquerading as this Siegrain as our colleague for years, your word alone isn't evidence to his lack of guilt in play. He was an intelligent man, and spoke with both clarity and cunning behind his words to have myself and others convinced of him being in his right mind."

"Eleven years."

"What?"

"I robbed him of eleven years of his life since his time in the original Tower of Heaven, constructed by the Cult of Zeref," She admitted, her face a stoic plate for all to observe as she continued to summarize her part. "I used my abilities to brainwash the adept child to use him for my own ends, so that the Balam Alliance can further its plans in both resurrecting Zeref and accelerating our dismantlement of the Law of Magic over Ishgar. There was never a time when he found solace, only a mad ambition that I planted in his mind and kept reinforced right up until his scathing escape from death. I, the leader of the Seven Kin of Purgatory for Grimoire Heart, am responsible for every death and every soul tortured by him; it was all my doing."

"Ha!" Quantus guffawed, looking around as he affixed a replacement pair of green tinted goggles over his squinted eyes, enlarging them once more. "A likely story! You just want him free so you two can terrorize us once more!"

"Then why bother with this charade? Seems too complicated for a simple rescue," Aisus countered, making the shorter dwarf grimace angrily but not rebuke her. The Iceberg borne woman looked to the dark mage, nodding to her. "It sounds possible, if you can prove to us that you can break the will of us councilors."

"It doesn't even need to be all of us," Olivier proffered, waving a hand around with smug confidence, eyeing her over the back of her seat at Grimoire Heart's 2nd in command. "Just use it on me. I'm more than capable of resisting the brainwashing. If Jellal was half as strong in will as I, then I should prove no match to this so-called mind control of yours."

"Fool! It should be me!" Magnus Mercury shouted, stomping his way towards her with his hand no longer cradling his bruised abdomen. Thumbing towards his chest, he glared straight at Ultear as he sneered with contempt. "Cast your magic on me, you witch! I'll prove to you that your story is nothing more than a fabrication."

"Are you all missing the point of this?" Estus inquired incredulously, breaking the stare-offs of Olivier and Magnus from the dark mage. "This is meant to corroborate the story of hers, not to prove your own worth. There is more at stake than simply stoking your egos."

"I-I'd rather it not be me," Jurius muttered under his breath, shaking visibly while Quantus whistled too-innocently as to not be given any mind.

Suddenly, the Chairman stood up from his seat, stave in hand with all those in session to look at his sudden movement.

"Cast your spell, Ultear Milkovich," Gran Doma growled out, his eyes glaring challengingly at hers. "And make sure this isn't a waste of all our...time..."

As suddenly as he bellowed, he found the strength in his voice suddenly sapped.

The light of the room was extinguished, and in its place came a horrible spectral force of eldritch creation. A protuberance emerged in the midst of the table, veins of blood red throbbing consistently around a amethyst-black form with tendrils spiraling out of its ever-expanding mass. From its 'head' came a vertical severance; with an eye all those who studied the markings of the Black Wizard would know in an instant.

An angled, red eye within a pale backdrop that contracted and stared straight through him.

"**GRAN DOMA! YOUR INABILITY TO ACT ON YOUR CONSCIENCE HAS LEFT YOU WEAK AND MALLEABLE TO THOSE OF HIGHER STATION THAN YOU! THIS WEAKNESS TO ACT HAS RENDERED YOUR JUSTICE INERT AND FOILED!**" The entity bellowed, Gran Doma's face paling and his eyes shrinking as digital veins of red swam up his long-coat, armored body and straight into his ocular orifices. He could scarcely get out a strangled cry as he felt his mind be subsumed, the images of thousands of faceless beings all chanting the same thing, over and over, while the force continued to speak to him. "**BUT I WILL GRANT YOU POWER! POWER THAT WILL NO LONGER BE DENIED! YOUR JUSTICE WILL BE THE WORLD'S JUSTICE! AND NO ONE SHALL TURN AGAINST YOU, NO MATTER WHOM THEY BE! COMMONER, NOBLE, MAGE, MONSTER...THEY ARE NOTHING...IN THE HANDS OF THOSE WHO SERVE THE BLACK WIZARD!**"

He couldn't speak. His throat strangled, and his eyes blank as sweat poured off his weathered face. Spasming in place, the Council all looked around, trying to see what was causing duress to the man, but none could see it.

And then, he became stilled.

"Chairman?" Estus inquired, her eyes looking over to him worryingly along with Quarius and Jurius. Org himself found himself shocked in place, seeing something the others didn't; only Olivier, Aisus and Magnus saw it moments too late.

A blood-colored mist spewed like poison from Gran Doma's mouth, a disturbed smile breaching his face.

"Your services are no longer required, Council," The Chairman spoke, his body releasing a titanic wave of blackness from his body. The Aura was so palpable that it turned the room a deep, dim violet as he shined like a dying star. From the energy that poured from him came spectral hands that clenched around each of them, holding them in place while painfully squeezing. His armored left hand stretched out while a decadent smile spread across his face with teeth exhaling the noxious burgundy vapor, his right eye now revealing the Black Wizard's eye to signify his possession. "I will use you all as sacrifices! Once I rebuild the Tower of Heaven with the Council's resources, Zeref will live again. and I will ascend with him into the world of One True Magic!"

"C-Chairman!" Estus cried out with horror.

"Ultear, stop this madness!" Org bellowed, trying to wrench himself free but found himself powerless against this intangible force of Darkness Magic.

Magnus howled, prying at the hand with a visible breadth of fire from his body, but he was still bound in place. Aisus closed her eyes, calmly resigning herself to this situation while Olivier grimaced angrily, Quantus and Jurius bemoaning their fates with their own pitiful cries for help.

It was a scene that would've brought joy to Ultear a month ago, when she was still a devout follower of Master Hades in the Grimoire Heart Guild. Being one of the chief instigators to events that enabled the Balam Alliance's objectives to be reached this would have been just another step closer for all of their plans to reach the One True Magic along with their hailed dark messiah's return. It would be so easy to let them all die and use the Chairman as a puppet...

But that wasn't what she wanted.

She wanted to change, and in doing so, she had to save someone; someone who didn't deserve the Hell he was being subjected to.

Gran Doma continued to cackle madly, acting truly the part of a deranged servant of an evil force. With his hand clenching, he'd see to it that they all-

_Wait._

What was he doing?

For a moment, all was a haze in the Chairman's mind. It was hard for him to think, and what his surroundings were to him just now. Stumbling back, the rush of exorbitant energy and the submission to the alien voice; no, her voice.

"I...see," Gran Doma intoned gravely, sitting down on the seat of his wearily while the rest of the Council began to compose themselves, witnessing the dark energies disperse as if they were never there to begin with. "I am not one to be easily swayed, Ultear Milkovich...but...in a matter of days I am starting to question the strength of my own resolve."

"This is the power of Lost Magic, Chairman Doma," Ultear expressed with a matter-of-fact tone, not mocking him as much as she wished to. "It goes beyond the ordinary convention of understanding and nullifying its effects. Spells such as these are are as different to the modern age of magic as humans are a fundamentally different species to dragons. It was through this power I've held Jellal Fernandes under my thrall for over a decade, and he was never the wiser to it."

"I understand," He nodded sagely, the brim of his hat hiding the shame in his eyes nonetheless. "Tell me your terms, and I'll do everything in my power to recuse him of further guilt. You have my word."

* * *

_Cold._

That's the only sensation that Jellal felt from inside of his magic repelling cell. He was just one of many that presided within this damned chamber of glimmering crystal that suspended them in the middle of the air, with only spanning walkways carrying personnel to keep close watch on people like him. Though, unlike the vast majority of prisoners here, he was a special kind of prisoner that they kept locked up.

A traitor. A child turned monster. Someone who profited off the suffering of those that pledged absolute loyalty to him through conditioning or misguided ideology.

He smiled with the properties of a demon, laughing at those who fell before his heel that he crushed with absolution. Hundreds if not thousands died in construction of the Tower of Heaven in a vain hope of bringing back a wretched man from the dead. The dearest friend of his he turned into a sacrifice, and their comrade died in protection of the girl he was willing to cast aside.

When he had lost his memories, he was initially unaware of what he had wrought, and what horrors he inflicted. But one after the other, the thoughts filled with substance and the palace of his mind became imbued with such terrible things. And every product of what he had sustained his own ambitions brought about something completely and utterly ruinous:

**Guilt**.

In coming to this place, he was kept in conditions that were 'adequate' by the standards of the Council that sought to punish him. His rations were just enough to keep him from starving. Even when he had to relieve himself he was cuffed and bolted down till he was finished, bringing him back to his cell for the remainder of his day. And of course, between it all, was the torture.

Though it wasn't regulated as part of protocol he had guards on occasion lance him with staves of various kinds. Some were electric, leaving scorching marks on his flesh and jolting him fiercely. Others were of flame, and burned him and brought about cries of agony. Each time, a new kind of magical tool was used and a new kind of pain was inflicted upon his body.

Beyond the tears he felt himself shed the memory of Erza Scarlet kept returning to his mind. At one point he swore he had felt her warmth beside him, the smell of her hair and the sound of her fierce voice trying to uplift him. He had choked out a noise, her name, gasping on his chapped lips.

He had no fathoming of how long time was passing. The bouts between jolts, burns and other kinds of imbued punishment began to blur. He knew it had to have been months at this point, but he didn't know how many. Two? Four? It was probably longer, though there was no way of telling in his condition...

"Wakey-Wakey, _Lord_ Siegrain," Came the nasally speaking, purplish speckled amphibian guard. Of those in the employ, the frog-like species chosen to guard the prisoner of special import was delegated to a pair. Nadal, being the one speaking, with an ornate golden halo hovering behind his head attached to the top of his white-hooded, bluish robes. The other was Serena, a more portly, green speckled amphibian that was far too squeamish for his own good, and allowed Nadal to do as he pleases if only for being afraid of him despite verbal protests. Raising a stave, he placed it into the prison, seeing that Jellal's body wasn't responding to his words. "I said, WAKEY-WAKEY!"

With a jolting zap, the blue haired man spasmed in place, teeth bared and his body glowing with the outline of a violet-outlined-white flash of superheated plasma. If not for his rigorous build meant to endure far more during his time as a Wizard Saint, this kind of punishment would have stopped his heart or crippled him by now. But, even months in, the wounds were superficial and hardly fatal; but they were by no means pleasant to deal with.

"T-That's enough, Nadal! You know you'll get in trouble for this if you keep this up!"

"Bah! You're too gutless, Serena," The halo ordained amphibian warbled, turning to glare at him with a broad smirk. "He's under our control. A Saint and Councilor! For all these miserable hours without overtime and dreary tasks we're practically enslaved to enact, wouldn't you feel good about sticking it back to the man, hm?!"

"B-But its like I told you. He's not Siegrain. It was all just a lie-"

"Like it makes a difference," Nadal dismissed with a crooked grin on his lip-less face. "Isn't that right, Jellal? It doesn't matter, does it?"

"...er...za...where...?"

"Oh, talking about _her_ again, are you?" He grinned, raising the staff up over his head before plunging it back in. "I already told you the last month. All of them fairies are dead!"

Zapped again, the man convulsed back and forth, writhing in further agony as he couldn't help but let out a guttural howl escape his clenched teeth. The amphibian let out a croaking laugh, bringing a few wary gazes from his peers on various levels, making Serena sweat nervously at the sight.

"N-Nadal! We're being watched! You got to stop-!"

"And why should I?! I'm just getting warmed up!"

"What is the meaning of this?!"

Stopping mid-current, Nadal found his throat forming a large lump just as Serena let out an impotent squeal. Turning shakily, he saw the last person he wanted to see here. The man, adorned in white with teal strips of cloth with the crest of the Rune Knights emblazoned on his collar and his black hair ornately placed into a pin-braided bun behind his head. The bespectacled man had a rare look of anger men rarely see, executed through the glare of his glasses refracting the light of his magic stave.

"S-Sir Lahar!" He gaped, stammering aloud. "W-What honor it is to-"

Snatching the staff out of his hand, Lahar tossed it to one of the knights behind him, speaking gravely with a crisp edge to his formally stoic voice, "You know our policy of invoking unregulated punishments on prisoners, Nadal. Torture is prohibited, regardless of the crime the prisoner has done. Worse, in this case, you have been torturing someone who has been found guiltless of previous crimes."

"S-S-Say WHAT?!" Nadal blithered out with bulging eyes, incredulous at this statement. "B-B-But I-I-I th-th-thought-!"

"It doesn't matter what you think. The crime you've committed is clear," Lahar's eyes came back into focus as he spoke, his hands placed behind his back as he glared forth at him. "You are stricken of your station, Nadal, and placed under observation for the next six months for psychological evaluation. After such a time has been finished, you will be discharged effective immediately. The decision is final."

"You can't do this to me!" Nadal croaked out, stepping forward only to find himself lunging back from spears pointed at him from either flank of Lahar's, poised by dutiful Rune Knights. "I-I've been loyal to the Council for many years of my life! Why should his existence matter at all?"

"You could be torturing a pickpocket and the result would still end the same, Nadal. You should learn that we of the Rune Knights do not tolerate insubordination nor malicious actions towards those in our custody. We are keepers of magical law, not bullies," Lahar intoned seriously, looking over to Serena with a cynical stare. "And you should have reported his misconduct sooner. You are also stricken from your station and placed under observation for six months for psychological observation. After such time, you will also be discharged effective immediately. This decision is also final."

"I...understand," Serena bowed his head, hanging it with shame.

"Take them away," Lahar ordered, not even looking as four knights walked past him and ferreted the two former amphibious guards away from the cell, out of sight and soon to be out of mind. Once they were escorted away, he turned towards the cell that Jellal was currently smoking within. Raising his gloved fingers he began to swiftly carve runes into a complex circle around its surface, as if painting a picture with the erratically swift gestures. What would've taken his company of knights together to do, he accomplished in seconds, and the cube became a flat surface that erected itself to the walk-space they were standing upon.

"...is it...true?" He heard him rasp out, making him stop with his mouth opened and eyes look down widely. "Are they...is Fairy Tail...?"

Stopping for a few seconds, the Head Captain of the Enforcement Unit grimly thinned his lips and averted his gaze from the man.

"As far as we know, Fairy Tail's most prominent members attended its S-Class tests on its founding island of Tenrō. Unfortunately, after barely surviving an encounter with another arm of the Balam Alliance - Grimoire Heart - Acnologia descended upon them. There has only been two reported survivors; the Exceed, Charle, and her companion, Wendy Marvell," He answered succinctly in as clear of a tone as he could.

Shivering in place, Lahar saw Jellal curl into a fetal position and begin to weep into his knees. The sobs made any hint of words come out as indiscernible gibberish, though it was evident of whom he spoke of the most. While he lied there, a healing light was bestowed upon his body, surprising the man while he was prone.

Casting a glance over, his tear-stained face saw a pair of knights using staves tinged with Holder Magic of the Light element, restoring his vitality and undoing the marks left by his jailers. Staring at them with bewilderment, he'd notice a hand extended out to him, gloved and belonging to the Rune Knight Captain himself. Though he had no comforting smile to share with him, his eyes were softened and a sense of empathy was reaching out towards him.

"I am here to escort you to anywhere of your choosing. It is the least I can do for someone of your significance," He proffered.

"I...want to stay here," Jellal spoke, halfheartedly, his sight looking far-off and not at the man's spectacles but past them. "If she's not out there...then...I have no desire to leave this place."

"You are an innocent man. I can't allow you to stay here," Lahar protested stoically.

"Innocent? I have enslaved my friends, tortured the ones closest to me, and caused the deaths of countless innocents of my pursuit for a Black Wizard who is not even of this world! If I had not been so weak to temptation, in that cell of mine over a decade ago, I wouldn't have caused so much harm. All those children," He gritted his teeth, eyes clenched shut and his body pulled further into a tight ball as he muffled out. "Simon...I killed you...and I almost killed you, Erza. And now you're gone...and I couldn't do anything...!"

"I am not here to be your counselor or therapist, Jellal," The Captain spoke, his eyes furrowing and his extended hand out grasping at the scruff of his neck. Despite the squirming protest, he was hauled to look him in the eyes, regardless of his disheveled, ruined expression. "But I am taking you out of here. By force if I have to. I will not let your self pity bar me from my duty!"

"Do what you want," He spoke bitterly, his eyes hidden by spiky blue bangs as the rest of his visage portrayed a sullen expression. Casting his gaze onto the glassy floor below him, he muttered aloud. "I'll just find a deeper hole than this one, and lock myself there..."

Sighing, Lahar hauled him out of his former cell and placed him in the grasp of two able-bodied knights who were just behind the ones healing him. While not falling limp he did shrug off their grasp and dejectedly kept in line.

Satisfied, if not barely, Lahar turned and began to march with his men towards the exit of the massive chamber. Their walks punctuated the mostly quiet that hung in the air. Every step Jellal couldn't help but recall the last time he saw Erza. Despite not being in his right state of mind it had been a confusing, dramatic occurrence to behold her for what he thought was going to be the last time. He even helped her and her friends best Master Zero's plans to use Nirvana, allowing Natsu to imbibe the flame that contained all of the magical power he had left. They had even considered allowing him to join, as wistful a dream that could have been.

And now, even as he had obtained miraculous freedom, the guilt wouldn't wash away. Memories drenched in blood, tainted by evil and forever marking his mind of what he had committed.

"Captain Lahar! Where do you want us to take the new prisoner?"

"Place her in the same space Jellal was."

"Understood!"

"Wait-!" Jellal suddenly spoke, his head jerking upright and his dark eyes widening as he saw a new figure walking towards him, held in cuffed-chains by a pair of other Run Knights. "Ultear! What are you doing?!"

"I'm surrendering," The deep lavender haired woman confessed, a hint of a smile playing on her face. "I got bored of getting away with things. I thought to shake things up a bit and see how the captive life is-"

"What do you mean, surrendering?!" He yelled aloud, his body almost lurching past the knights that held him in check. A cross between venom and shock slid across his face, bared teeth and widened eyes as he looked her unflappable visage. "I could barely remember what happened, after the R-System collapsed. What happened to you, and why are you here?!"

"My own conscience, I suppose," The dark eyed woman sighed, closing her shaded orbs as her smile was replaced with a forlorn turn of her uncolored lips. "How much do you know...about what happened?"

"I'm told the worst has come to pass," Jellal bitterly spoke, turning his head as he clenched his eyes while grinding his teeth together. "Erza, and the others...are gone!"

"I was there," She said, immediately bringing his face to a shocked look and turning to stare at her with bewilderment. A sad smile adorned her face as she began to explain outright. Of how she was the leader of the Seven Kin Purgatory of Grimoire Heart, and how she had been using him for the time he had changed inside the cell as a child into something unrecognizable. And every plan of his was hers, planted into his mind and that Zeref was not one inhabiting the land of the dead, like they thought, but somehow alive and active in the world. She even went into detail of how she had tried to make amends by restoring the tree after being soundly defeated by Gray, and almost taking her own life when she felt there was no other path for penance open to her; and then she saw Acnologia's flight and the resulting destruction.

"So, you're telling me, that all of my guilt is your fault, and solely to blame?" Jellal questioned, incredulously as a hint of a sardonic smile playing at his face. "Is that supposed to make me feel better about myself? About what I've wrought with my own two hands?!"

"What you do with your own feelings is up to you, Jellal. As for me, I've committed far more atrocities by my own hands than you had your entire life. Though I didn't choose to be who I am, I cannot deny I had an opportunity to turn away from it. My foolishness robbed me of the life I could have had, but I can still make amends now but allowing you to choose life while you still have it," She said, her eyes looking into his as her voice grew solemn. "And, there are still people _she_ had left behind that could use your help."

It brought a ridiculous notion to the forefront of his thoughts. He had remembered when they had un-ironically extended a hand of friendship and a place of belonging to him when they had brought down Nirvana together. Now, he was being told by the woman whom claimed responsibility for the hellish life he led, to go there now. It was so absurd to hear it that he couldn't help but chuckle with disbelief.

"To Fairy Tail? The people I tried to destroy on more than one occasion? What makes you think they'd welcome me?" He began to ask, then biting his lip, trembling as he looked down enough that his bangs covered his eyes. "What if I don't feel welcome, no matter how much they try?"

"Its your life, Jellal. From now on, you are starting over. No more Council. No more schemes. You are your own person now, and the world is open to you," Ultear began to say, walking ahead and brushing past him as the guards kept pace with her and maneuvered around their comrades along with the captain. Stopping for a few moments, she looked over her shoulder, seeing that he didn't do the same while hanging his head in place. "You are restarting from zero. Try to make the most of your life and do something with it."

"Why do you care so much?" He asked, his head still hanging and his body still not moving from his place. "What do you get out of this?"

"Nothing. Maybe a small sense of relief I'm undoing a wrong I've committed. Unfortunately, Age Seal doesn't allow me to turn back time and undo the crimes I've committed. However, it doesn't mean I can't help but try," She confessed, her gaze tilting slightly away. Then, she remembered and looked over at him. "There is one person I want you to look after for me. She's very dear to my heart and I...would hate to see her have no one now that I'm here."

"What if I don't want to look after her?" He postulated.

"Then it will make me sad," She turned her head, her face now a mixture of pain and remorse. "But I can't force you. Either way, the choice is up to you. Consider what I've said, and my treasured someone, something to consider."

Walking away, Jellal didn't hear her say another word. Sealed away in the cube, he took one last look and saw her looking more at peace than he had ever remembered her being. Taken away through the complex weaving of halls and corridors of the prison, he soon found himself in the open embrace of the outside. Sunlight touched his skin and he remembered what it felt like.

Lahar unlatched a satchel from one of the knights and handed it to him, along with a cloak.

"I understand if you don't want us to take you further, but my offer still stands. I'll take you anywhere you want to go in Fiore, and ensure your safety-"

"I'll be fine," The italic-tattooed man replied crisply, putting the cloak around his exposed upper body and fastening the sack over his shoulder. "Which way is Magnolia?"

"East. Why you ask?"

"Just considering my options," The blue haired man spoke softly, turning to see a pink haired shadow looming around a tree not far away in the distance. Letting out a sigh, he closed his eyes and began to take his first steps forward.

The gravity of his own body was almost foreign to him. It'd take time to have his strength restored to what it once was, but that will happen during his sojourn, he believed.

Approaching the girl hiding behind the tree in the distance, he saw her finally step out and cast him a steely scowl. It was intense enough that it made him stop moving, and his dark eyes blinked with curiosity.

"You...saw Ultear, right?" She parsed out, slowly between barely controlled lips. Her eyes were already threaten to moisten and her cheeks began to turn red. "Did...did she tell you she did this for you? That she's sacrificing any chance of freedom so that you can move on?!"

His gaze softened, a smile playing at his lips as her words rang true with those who spoke to him before.

"Yes," He quietly said. "I'll try not to dishonor her sacrifice-"

"That's not good enough!" She snapped, bringing his body to lurch back as he saw her step into his space quicker than he anticipated. Glaring up at him, her eyes showed a warm, overflowing love that mingled with the anger, spilling tears over her cheeks as she jabbed a finger into his chest. "You'll do it, damn if you do or don't! And if you fail in any way, I'll make sure you regret ever taking a lungful of air for that loathsome body of yours!"

"U-Understood," He found himself stammering, unsure of what to make of this child. "If I might ask...what's your name?"

"A-Ah!" She withdrew, her arm folding just below her chin with an upraised knee as she almost fell over from shock. "S-She didn't even tell you my name?! H-How dare she?!"

The italic tattooed man blinked, finding her sudden heel turn into embarrassment and indignation equally as bewildering.

Standing upright, she cleared her throat into her gloved mouth, the wing-ornament around her ears clinking slightly as she stood at attention and pointed towards him, "My name is Meredy, formerly one of the Kin Purgatory of Grimoire Heart! I'll be watching you closely, Jellal Fernandes, from this point forward! I'll kick your ass if you slip up now, and I won't let you go quietly if you die on me and make my Ultear sad. Understood?!"

With a strained smile, Jellal nodded weakly as he sighed aloud, "Understood, Meredy. I'll...do my best."

"Peh! Good enough," She icily spat, turning on her heels and looked over her shoulder at him. "What are you waiting for? Keep up, or I'll leave you behind."

"_What a sassy child you left for me, Ultear,_" Jellal thought, finding himself shaking his head with mirth. "_It'll be harder than hard, moving forward after everything. But, you still moved on, even after what I put you through, right? __Even though you may truly be gone forever, I won't give up on living, and I won't throw away this second chance. I'll...try to make you proud, Erza._"

* * *

"Is it really alright? Letting Jellal go, that is," Jurius spoke gravely, almost hushed in a whisper as the meekest of the Council beheld a distant glassy image of the aforementioned man projected by the Lacrima suspended in the middle of the table. "Even if he's truly innocent, as evidence suggests, he was once one of us. He knows too much. And there's also the matter he's one of the Ten Wizard Saints, with few that compare; apart from the Four Gods-"

"Let the man be," Estus intoned, her hands folded over the table top while staring at him with a chiding stare. "Based on our observation, he truly has suffered enough. And should he actually do some good with his new lot in life, I say more power to him."

"Ordinarily, I'd rebuke you on that idealistic thinking, Estus," Org began to say, his voice heavy and his open eye closing with a sigh; the bird on his head fluttering nervously. "But, honestly, I don't have the energy to counter that."

"What of the Chairman?" Quantus croaked, looking at the now vacant seat of where the previously dominating presence was, now retired from the session entirely. "He looks deeply affected by this event...do you think he's still up for the task?"

"It will take time, but our meeting should be concluded before we return to our respective duties," Aisus proclaimed, her body seated straight against her seat's back as she addressed the rest who were still present. "There are changes coming to the world, not withstanding in large part to the attacks on the kingdoms by the dark mage band of thieves who wreaked havoc on the economy and stability of the nations surrounding us. Recovery will take time, and in that gap of recuperation we shall make haste to prepare for whatever nefarious forces make their moves."

"I'll endeavor to look into these connections the Lazuli family has with us," Olivier announced, her hand raised to cup her chin as the other brushed through her luscious hair thoughtfully. "If I can find some dirt, or anything that'd keep him from further extortion over us, the sooner will be the better. And if push comes to shove, I'll expose his slander at the next ball; by that time, I should have enough support to bring him down a peg or two."

"I'll double the Rune Knights around the kingdoms," Magnus declared with a sage nod. "We want to keep what happened from repeating itself, its our job to provide more thorough security."

"Well, at least that takes care of what we're going to do, for the most part," Estus sighed with relief, smiling as she looked over to Aisus. "What were the other matters we need to go over?"

"It was actually Quantus who wanted to broach the topic," The Iceberg Councilor gestured with a wave of her hand. "Its something we should keep an eye out for; something about a galvanizing of mages into the ranks of the military...namely, our homelands."

"Quantus, is this true?"

"See for yourselves," The dwarf threw the papers across the table, showing the signet of his own kingdom on the list along with similar but different paperwork belonging to that of the neighboring kingdom's. "The worse has yet to come...but its a certainty...war looms in the horizon; the era of peace is about to change to conflict once more!"

* * *

**A/N:**

**Demod20:** _What's this? An entire chapter devoted to a Flashback with no return to the present with dear, sweet Wendy?! What HERESY is this?!_

_All jokes aside, this is something my co-author and I have been discussing ever since we began working on the 4th Chapter. The harsh reality is that Jellal Fernandes is innocent and has never once committed a crime of his own volition. The fact that, as an amnesiac, he was compelled to do the right thing really sells just how mad he was thanks to Ultear's possession. While he acts like a martyr in Canon, Ultear gets off relatively Scott free and does jack all to help reconcile the things she's did to the man, let alone everyone else's lives she engineered in ruining._

_And upon further investigation, I found that there was not very much known or cared about for the "New Council". So because Hiro didn't care to even name anyone outside of Gran Doma, I decided to make a completely new cast of characters apart from Orga. They all have their respective kingdoms they hail from, their own quirks, and their own flaws that make them who they are. I hope they all balanced well, especially with a hardass like Doma there. And with Ultear humbling them with the hard truth of another misdeed done by them, the plot only further thickens around the kingdoms, not to mention the corrupt use of extortion by the Lazuli Family._

_Hopefully y'all enjoyed this bit, and we can resume to the present day where everyone can appreciate Jellal and Meredy's inclusion into the guild's ranks ^^ See you all in the next update!_

**LastationLover5000: **_Hey guys! So I didn't write anything on this chapter, but I wanted to come in to voice something anyway. This entire idea was my co-authors, though we did discuss is as a team and came to an agreement. Jellal being a martyr for something he is not 100% responsible for was not the best choice in our decision, and Ultear, who claimed to want t make amends, did nothing to clear Jellal's name. This here is our attempt to rectify what we consider to be a mistake. We'll see you all in the next chapter!_


	14. A Royal Welcome

**Chapter 14 - A Royal Welcome**

**Written by Demod20 and LastationLover5000**

* * *

It was quite the tale told to the attentive members of Fairy Tail. The mages hadn't expected to be regaled of such detail and drama to take place, especially one revolving around a man formerly one of the most wanted man in the world of magic. Having been incarcerated the last time they spoke, Wendy had only just begun to learn about _this_ Jellal wasn't hers; the one that had raised her. They were very alike as - during his apparent amnesiac state - was out to protect those he cared for, and helped them destroy Nirvana, stopping the Oracion Seis dark mage guild utterly.

But now, it turns out he wasn't in fact guilty of the crimes they took him away for. It was quite the shock, seeing as how certain the Council was of his crime. How could such a cunning traitor, after all, be completely exempt from such heinous actions and a carefully laid out series of actions woven into a maniacal plan to resurrect the Black Wizard, Zeref, himself?

"...so you see, Ultear had complete control of Jellal's motives for years. He had been innocent, and unaware of his own motives for all of that time," Meredy continued to explain, regaling the audience of Fairy Tail with the occasional raise of a gloved hand and the gesture of the other. "He may be an emotionally damaged bag of self pity, but he's far from responsible for his actions."

"I see," Macao frowned, a pensive expression resting on his lightly bearded face. As he examined Jellal he could see a dimness in the man's eyes. It was something he hadn't seen since looking at Gray when he first arrived at the Guild; an emptiness that was filled with melancholy, a feeling that there was very little to live for beyond a vague given goal.

Much like joining Fairy Tail.

"I've seen quite a few kids like this, but this man..." Wakaba spoke in a low tone, his voice a rare sense of seriousness as he kept his arms crossed over his chest, the smoke out of his pipe a muffled vapor instead of a casual chimney like it normally was. "He's lost both a childhood and most of his young adult life, being manipulated like this. I don't even think the old man would want to turn him away."

"If I am a bother, I'll make do on my own," Jellal reaffirmed, as he had from the beginning. Cold eyes looked up with a hollow expression as his lips quivered with the words he forced himself to say. "I know I don't deserve to be here, simply because I ask. If this is too much to take in so quickly, I can just-"

"NO!" Meredy shouts, a comically large hand of ethereal light formed in the air above his head and slapped his blue tressed crown; bowling over from the a crackle of pain and phantom force, his face striking the ground with a loud _thud!_

"You are not backing out of this! Remember the promise you made, or has a little trek across the countryside made you forget everything again?!" Meredy screamed angrily, her pixie features stretching exaggeratedly with a fiery rosy aura. "Ultear's stuck in prison for your sad self! So stop trying to back out now, and own up to it!"

"Well aren't you the picture of delightful?"

"Don't turn this on me, bowlcut!" The pink-haired teen jabbed a temperamental throbbing finger at the dryly speaking Max. "I've had it up to here with his gloomy attitude! Trying to keep him together is bad enough as it is, and I'm the one who has to tell the story properly, so you can shut it!"

"...why do people hate my hair?" Max mumbled with bewilderment, eyes going cross as he threaded his fingers along his neatly trimmed bangs.

"So, if you don't mind me asking," Wendy piped up, bringing Meredy's angry disposition back to a more neutral one at seeing the blue-haired girl's softer words directed to her. Lowering her hand, the cobalt tressed dragon slayer tilted her head to the side, blinking curiously as she inquired, "How do you know all of these details, exactly? Obviously you didn't see this Ultear after she parted ways. Were you hiding in some way?"

"Don't be obscene," The golden-feathered head turned, her gloved hands placed on her hips as she addressed the Sky Maiden directly. "I don't skulk around like some thief..."

"ACHOO!" Robyn, Bobbie and Eris sneezed in unison, making Macao look over with concern.

"...I used my one-of-a-kind Magic, Maguilty Sense," She continued her debrief, raising up her own wrist to show a brief mark of rosy light that encircled her flesh and glowed brightly like a brand. "I can attach my own senses to anyone I have a strong connection to. And from there, I can share their senses, including their speech and hearing; so I could make out the details as Ultear negotiated with the Council, and when she had her final farewell with Jellal."

"Why didn't you just attach your senses to Jellal as well?"

"Because he was imprisoned in a Council cell until just recently," Doranbolt answered on Meredy's behalf, to the Exceed that floated up next to Wendy's shoulder. The scarred man looked over at Jellal and gave him a once-over. "A mage of his caliber, was likely placed in a prison that has runes that seal magical power. Only someone of the Rune Knights' higher class is allowed to break the seal, so until then, no magic can be felt or used by him or on him till the barrier is brought down."

"Exactly," Meredy nodded, her eyes squinting at the man. "You one of them...the Rune Knights, that is?"

"Former, actually," The man formerly known as 'Mest' replied with a nervous smile on his face. "Wendy needs me, far more than I desire to keep my old job. Like it or not, I'm a Fairy Tail Mage; unless that in of itself is a problem."

"As if," She huffed with a sigh, closing her eyes as she turned her head so her golden-feathered headpiece clinked audibly with her neck's movement. "I just don't want you harassing me or mopey here cause of past grievances. We want to start off with a clean slate. Is that enough?"

"I'm not the Guild Master, so its not up to me," The teleporter replied with a disarming gesture of his hand, waving it over to Macao - whom had a pondering expression this whole time - who looked his way with a raised brow. "I'm merely a rookie in this guild. He has more authority than I do."

"Technically-"

"Shut it, Wakaba!" The blue-haired man hissed with a sharp turn, quickly clearing his throat as he addressed the girl and Jellal properly; the latter standing upright, dusting himself off despite the painful impact of the shorter girl's strike. When their eyes met his, Macao pocketed his hands and walked up to them, talking as sagely as he could manage. "Listen, I'm not going to pretend to understand what you went through, nor are you expected to be fully trusted by anyone here. However, I have a good read for people. Have been for years, and I've seen young'uns and older folk come from all sorts of backgrounds, shady to tragic."

Stopping in front of Jellal, his blue-trim white coated body standing a mere meter apart from the dark cloaked former Councilor, a thin line crossing his lips as he spoke to him with a guttural voice, "Do you swear to protect the secrets of this guild, shield your fellow mages and treat this hall as if it was your own home?"

"I do," The man intoned without wavering. "I've already made up my mind since I left. Unless you say that I'm not needed-"

"Its not a matter of need, dammit!" Macao shouted, his hand reaching out to grasp the italic-tattooed man by the collar, shocking him out of his despondent stupor to look wide-eyed at the Guild Master's darkened visage that encroached into his space. "You have to put the guild above your own self interest. This isn't a place where you can act selfishly. If you're only saying this out of obligation, then you're only doing this because of guilt; I won't accept someone with such a weak will, I'll never abide by it!"

There was a loud, pregnant pause as the man was broken out of his rigid shell.

It hadn't occurred to him how listless he had been behaving since his newfound freedom. Even with the clarity afforded to explain away the horrors that he enacted against his own will, to go to the place where she wasn't any longer tore at him inside. His hope that she'd live on a better life than he did. Without her here, he felt that he had failed in some way...but...

"_Do not die, Jellal! All of our hopes are tied together! Live, and find out what happens next!_"

"Erza...you..."

Jellal closed his eyes, feeling a distinct stinging in his eyes as his heart throbbed in his chest.

"_I am one who knows the light that shines within Jellal!_"

"Ngh...!" He grimaced, his face construed past the mask of melancholic stoicism and let tears rush down his face. As Macao relinquished his grip, Jellal raggedly breathed out as he felt himself heave with emotion.

"_Live on! Endure the guilt, for my sake and yours!_"

"It hurts so much," He admits, his watery eyes opening as he cups his mouth, his body hunched over in front of everyone. "The bond that tied me here has been severed. She's dead, and I live! Why her and not me?! It's not fair!"

"You're right."

Amidst his weeping, Jellal found his gasps and hiccups pause for a few seconds. Turning slowly to look towards the source of the voice and he found it to be the one who had mistook his identity upon his emergence from death. Wendy Marvell walked forward, her stocking legs treading forward slowly as her hazel eyes shined brightly up at him. But, amidst that gleam came an inherent sadness; one that shared the pain that he understood all too well.

"It's not fair that they're gone, and we're left behind," Wendy admits, smiling up sadly at the grieving man. "But, they wouldn't want us to be sad with them being gone. They'd want us to laugh, and carry on with their spirit burning within our chest. It won't be easy but, I know they'd want us to keep carrying on," She said, holding her arms out with a hint of moisture in her brown orbs; all while the imagined outlines of Natsu, Erza, Gray and many others stood beside and behind her with a majestic shine of united emotion, reinforcing her words as she spoke past the crackle in her throat. "I am not alone, as I am swallowed up by their love, forever till the end of days!"

"Wendy..." The blue haired man sighed, a hint of a smile breaching past his saddened expression despite it all. "_I can see...why someone like you, who lost so much...can show someone so pathetic like me...what I still have..._"

Straightening his stance, he reached out and placed a hand on Wendy's head, rubbing it gently. While it was a surprise to the emotionally resonating slayer, she smiled past her own tears - her cheeks blushing at the sign of affection - happy that her words had been met with some form of positivity.

"Master," Jellal finally spoke, his words clear and without hesitation as his gaze met the man in charge of the guild. "I will put my life on the line to protect this guild; and I shall live as if they are my own family."

"Heh, that's the spirit!" Macao grinned toothily, raising up a hand that formed a ball of blue flame. It in turn formed a spiral that formed its own hand that gave a thumb's up to him, the master himself winking to the troubled mage. "Welcome to Fairy Tail, Jellal."

"Hey!"

"And you too, Meredy," He added sheepishly at the sharp cry from the feisty pixie girl.

As soon as the go-ahead was given from the master, a sense of relief washed the whole of the group. Approaching them with gusto, the aforementioned younger of the pair recoiled at their friendliness, while Jellal just took it in a calmer manner.

"You got moxie, kid!" Mickey commented with a cheeky grin, raising a cat-glove up and forming a fist. "I like it when a girl has spunk. Do you fancy yourself fisticuffs or you strictly a blasty-gal?"

"I was one of the Seven Kin-" Meredy began to reply, then forcing herself to cough before closing her eyes and turning her face indignantly to the devil-horned blonde wearing a tiger-print shirt. "Yes, I can hold my own quite well."

"Fantastic! Wanna go a few rounds?"

"Mickey, don't challenge the rookie before she's even gotten a guild mark!" Warren reprimanded with a raised hand.

"Why not? I want to see what she's made of!"

"If she's able to send Jellal to the floor with a single move, I'm pretty sure she's tough as is," Max pointed out with a gesture at the blue-haired man. "Try to keep your teeth and take my advice to leave the kid alone."

"I'm not a kid-!"

"You're practically as tall as Wendy. You're a child."

A loud _slap!_ was heard as Max's body sailed through the air, face-first imprinting into the wall before falling to the ground with a thud.

"You kinda earned that one," Charle sighed, shaking her head with lament.

"Wow, you really are strong!" Mickey laughed aloud, watching the pink-haired girl dispel the ethereal hand that she used to send the Sandstorm mage flying. "I'll wait for the master to get your brand."

"You say brand, but...is it painful?"

"No, it kind of tickles," Laki confessed with a smile. "We're not that kind of guild after all."

"I-I knew that!" Meredy stammered. "I just wanted to be sure, that's all!"

"Aww, aren't you just the cutest!" Bisca cooed, her hands reaching out and pinching the shorter girl's cheeks, stretching them out much to her chagrin. "For someone who has such confidence, you really don't know much about mages, do you? You're so innocent!"

"Ahhh! Gesh offsh meh!" The young adult barely mouthed out while her face was mushed by the affectionate gunslinger.

"Go easy on her, Bisca-" Alzack tried to urge her.

"I want one just like her, though!" She spoke aloud, causing the prior to blush madly at the insinuation; especially at the glowing eyes she saw his significant other possess. "Just like her, but with a hat like mine!"

"B-B-B-Bisca-!"

"Whoa there, love birds," Wakaba chuckled aloud, hunched over with a casual gait as he gently pried Bisca away from Meredy. "Why not give the newcomer a little space, hm?"

"Oh...I'm sorry, I just got a little excited, haha!" The green-haired immigrant replied with a nervous scratch to her face while Alzack tried to turn his face away bashfully.

Meredy attempted to slink away, muttering, "Clingy weirdo," before she bumped into the bottom half of a bodaciously soft chest. Blinking she looked up, seeing a woman looking down at her with sparkling eyes from a mostly emotionless face that was dressed in a bunny-suit; complete with its own bunny-ear head piece atop her soft yellow locks.

"The heck are you-MMPH?!" She'd barely get out before having her chest smothered in the barely concealed mammaries, her pink crown pressed behind by a soft hand while another wrapped around her upper body.

"So cute," Bobbie uttered, petting the girl's head with a soft pink blush working its way across her face. "Can I keep you?"

"Nmmmmmph!" She muffled out in protest, slapping at her bosom with repeated jiggles of impact.

"Dearest, can you relinquish the poor thing?" Eris proffered, airily floating next to the woman as she tapped at the bluish hue that was working its way over the barely visible cheeks of Meredy. "I don't think she can breathe."

"Oh," The Requip mage sighed, sadly releasing Meredy with a slick unfastening sound of her small face against her elastically covered mounds.

"GAH!" Meredy inhaled deeply, her face pale but slowly regaining color. Looking to Bisca, then Bobbie and the others she blinked with bewilderment at everyone present. "The...the heck is wrong with all of you people?!"

"Have you never had affection given to you before, little bird?" Eris inquired with a tilt of her head.

"I'm not a bird!" She exclaimed, then paused, as if taking stock of what the reactions were to her joining. Her face fell, as she kicked her feet oddly and looked about, holding one of her arms as she confessed. "Apart from Ultear, the only time I remember kindness was with my family. But, they died a long time ago and...I haven't had anyone show me kindness for awhile..."

"I understand," The elf replied, bringing the young adult's gaze to her own. The soft rosy eyes showed a sadness within, despite the smile she maintained across her soft fey-like face. "Loneliness begets a sense of isolation from compassion. It is hard to quantify how long it takes to renew familiarity with the customs of affection; even simple greetings of earnest can come as suspicious when you've been without love for so long. Before my blue bird, I too struggled with this sense of camaraderie shown to me by others."

"Does...it ever get easier?" Meredy asked, almost pleadingly though doing her best to hide it.

"With time, it does," She proffered with a much brighter grin. "But depend on your new family in the meantime. They'll stick by your side, even if you're not comfortable with them."

"Family..."

The word was an old almost forgotten one to the girl.

As she contemplated this, Jellal himself was engaged by the other mages one by one with a few words exchanged. While he himself wasn't as open to engage in prolonged dialogue, he did his best to be approachable as they came up to him.

"Did the Council give you any grievance upon being let go?" Doranbolt asked, a look of curiosity masking his own concern for the former employers may had mistreated him.

"I actually gave them a hard time," Jellal confessed, recounting the part of the story that Meredy didn't include for Ultear not being present at the time. "The Rune Knight Head Captain...Lahar, I think his name was...he didn't take no for an answer, even when I felt something in my gut that something terrible happened was confirmed about everyone in Fairy Tail. But, he was quite acquiescing, offering me provisions and clothing, even transportation if I desired it."

"Well, he should have," The teleporter huffed with a turn of his eyes. "Damn Lahar can be rigid, but dependable. He would've made the trip easier for you."

"I don't desire an easy solution," The blue-haired man admitted, bringing a look of surprise to the former Rune Knight. "If I wanted easy, I wouldn't have agreed to take care of Meredy, after all."

"She does seem...energetic," Doranbolt intoned, his eyes wavering over to the girl as she nimbly dodged with bulging eyes as Bobbie went in for another smothering hug. "A member of the Seven Kin of Purgatory. We didn't have a file on her probably because of her age and lack of any real crimes yet to be committed. It is likely Ultear left her out of the discussion so that the Council wouldn't be inclined on imprisoning her as well."

"That seems to be a likely scenario," The ex-Councilor nodded with agreement.

"Ummm..." Wendy began to mutter out, bringing Jellal's attention back to the Sky Maiden. Twiddling her fingers, she looked up at him, and began speak her mind. "I found my Jellal...not long after we parted ways. But, even so, I was happy that some part of him was in you even if your memories weren't all there. Which makes me wonder, have all of them returned yet?"

"They have," Jellal soberly answered. "I recounted them all, one by one, until they filled me with more agony than any torture my jailors inflicted on my body. It is something I will live with for the rest of my life, knowing what I did to my friends and the rest of those imprisoned in the Tower of Heaven."

"Then you'll just have to help more people than you've hurt," The cobalt haired slayer spoke with determination. "That's the only solution!"

"That's the plan," He agreed with a smile.

"Soooooo~" A sing-song tune came from his side, bringing Jellal blinking owlishly over at something soft worm around and press against his flank. There he saw a beautiful pair of blue eyes, fluttering lashes causing them to twinkle, as a head of long teal colored hair spilled from a crown over his sleeve and over exposed shoulders. The robed person pushed his bicep and tricep into a slightly curved but definitively flat chest, while soft hands kneaded into his muscle while a stocking covered leg nudged against his pants' thigh. "I got blue hair...you got blue hair...I like to think myself a tragic figure who's been misunderstood...we go hand in hand, yes?"

"I...don't follow," Jellal replied with confusion.

Robyn placed his head against shoulder, purring as he trailed a hand across his cloak covered chest. "Why don't we wallow in our mutual angst in a room somewhere, and recover through mutual passion, hm?"

Blinking with bewilderment, he turned to look at Wendy and Doranbolt with an expression that portrayed his perplexity.

"Don't look at me," Doranbolt raised his hands disarmingly, while Wendy just looked just as bothered as Jellal is. "All I know is that is a guy, not a girl."

"Does that matter? We're both beautiful people-"

Jellal instantly evaporated from place, leaving Robyn holding an imagined dotted-line. Realizing the folly, he flailed his arms for purchase before he fell clumsily onto the floor with a painful, "Ow!"

"I'm not into that, sorry," The man spoke as he slipped past the other mages and walked towards Macao and Wakaba. By the time the cyan haired stumbled up, he'd look wistfully as he walked away to the bar of the hall, getting the preparations to fill himself and Meredy as mages.

"Okay, what the Hell was that?" Max inquired, having gotten up from his painful heap.

"I'm going to make him mine," Robyn intoned with a thirstiness in his voice only furthered intensified by the star-like shine in his eyes. "He's perfect!"

"Ehhhhh?" Wendy blanched with sudden realization.

"This makes...too much sense," Doranbolt sighed with a visible cringe.

Wendy knew this was likely to be trouble, but not in the worst possible way.

With Jellal and Meredy joining, they now had five formidable members joining their guild. Fresh from victory and even convincing the now recuperating journalist, Jason, that they were just on the road for redeeming their wounded family and they were far from done. The path ahead was full of uncertainty, but also a distinct beacon of hope. No matter how hard the challenges ahead, she yearned to meet them head on, knowing she wasn't alone.

In Fairy Tail, she wasn't going to be alone, ever again.

* * *

**One Month Later  
**  
Time stopped for no one. This held true for the lowest merchant to the strongest Wizard Saint. In Fairy Tail, this was a facet of life that couldn't be ignored. The tragedy on Tenrō Island still hung over the Guild, and none of them ever thought it would be forgotten; however, everyone was finally beginning to move past their grief. Wendy, who had made such brave steps forward when she formed a team with Max, Charle, and Doranbolt — a team that the entire guild, either behind Wendy or to her face, were beginning to refer to as 'Team Wendy' — was the shining example of moving forward without forgetting the sacrifice of their friends.

Max Alors was heading towards the door, heading out to the guild's personal mailbox and get the new requests. In this simple sweep of motion, the man's thoughts began to turn towards his guild, and his comrades.

Max had been a party to seeing just how his Guild had grown in the simple month since the Tenrō Island incident, and the incident in Crocus in which 'Team Wendy' had been hailed as heroes of the nation. He was even considered one of the heroes, which he found hard to imagine for someone like himself. Yet it was fact. Team Wendy had been born through that debacle, and shortly after, Jellal Fernandes and a young girl named Meredy had joined Fairy Tail.

In the interim, Team Wendy had undergone several missions, and Max had to admit that not only was Wendy becoming a capable mage, but their overall teamwork as a single unit was improving. Everyone, however, was moving forward in their own way. Walking through the lower floor, Max could see the Fourth Master's son pouring over multiple books on magical theory — _Ignis Magicum, Flare's Handbook, Flamebound, Touch of Illumination_, among others — and chuckled to himself when he realised all of them were based on or had to do with Fire Magic.

_He still looks up to Natsu_, Max grinned.

Charle sat on a table in a corner of the bar, her small frame poured over satchels of what appeared to be glinting jewels. No, on closer inspection, Max realised they were a various assortment of rings. He remembered, a little under a week ago, Charle had gotten permission to look through Loke's old things, and for reasons known only to her, these rings had caught her eye. _I think those were Loke's back when he was staying in the Human World, banished from the Celestial Realm...I suppose he tried to make do with Human Holder Magic to lessen the strain his Celestial Spirit powers had on him?_ Max mused, unable to fathom what Charle could want with Loke's old possessions.

At the centre of the bar, Max saw Reedus — who had begun to shrink slightly, was he losing weight? — painting multiple members of the Guild at once, capturing their daily lives for posterity. Their star maiden herself, Wendy, was in a conversation with Laki, which Max had to agree was the oddest new friendship being formed since the Tenrō Incident, yet the two had become oddly close. Looking closer, he saw Laki showing off her Wood-Make magic to Wendy, creating several small sculptures made of wood that even Max could tell was ludicrously high quality. Wendy was absolutely enamoured with the skill, and asked Laki to make something grander.

Three of their newest recruits, Team Robyn, were, as usual, maintaining a wide-berth from the rest of the Guild. Robyn was the more sociable of the lot, yet this usually meant he spent his time drinking and hitting on any man within reach if they hit his criteria. Jellal had long since memorised Robyn's drinking schedule and learned to avoid the bar at these times. Eris was chastising her leader, the look of a concerned mother on her face as Robyn knocked back tankard after tankard of ale, but Robyn brushed her off.

"I ain't drinkin' too much!" Robyn slurred, his face flushed. "Besides, I only 'over-drink' when I'm feelin' sad!"

"Ah, your life must be full of hardship then," Bobbie replied sardonically. As always, Bobbie tried to stand out more than anyone else in the Guild, and she continued to succeed. Her current outfit was not from the country of Fiore, that much was obvious. A golden ring lying at the sternum looped a crisscrossed style of a bra top, velvet red that hooped over her shoulders and met at a similar ring that crisscrossed at the center of her back. A transparent dancer's shirt of amethyst silk lied comfortably over the smooth toned biceps and triceps, ending with golden rings for short sleeve cuffs. Below Bobbie's navel was a band of jewels, complementing a yellow trimmed red dancer's skirt that showed off her soft, thick legs while the fabric itself just covered her pelvic region and her barely concealed hindquarters. With golden bands wrapped around her wrists and ankles, the last striking piece of Bobbie's current outfit was a deep purple head piece; with a soft light amethyst silk draping in tandem with her luscious blonde locks, her cool blue eyes added by the hat's golden third-eye sewn into the cloth itself.

_I'm still not sure which one is the more eccentric,_ Max cast an eye to both Bobbie and Robyn, the exhibitionist, and the drunkard, and resisted the urge to bury his face into his hands. Lunacy was Fairy Tail's bread and butter, yet Team Robyn were certainly their own brand of madness. If the lovely Eris wasn't there to keep them in check, he was almost certain the Council might have re-arrested the lot of them. The two Mages he was most curious about, Max realised as he made his way towards the front door of the Guild, were Jellal and Meredy.

After Jellal had joined the Guild, he'd taken on a slew of missions, some with Meredy, and some without her, to the point that he was more exhausted than anything else. Even Robyn hadn't had the heart to make a pass at him during that time. Wendy had guessed that he was taking these jobs as a means to keep his mind off of everything, even to punish himself; Meredy agreed with her, and realising he might not heed her own warnings, reached out to Macao. With the authority Macao had as the Fourth Master, he ordered Jellal to pace himself. The man had, almost unwillingly, heeded the order, slowing his intake on missions, yet missions were still being done at a rapid rate.

Max found himself more confused when mulling over the contradiction.

Jellal was currently out on another mission, his first in three days, with Meredy in tow. Even if Max wanted to ask him, he'd have no time to do it now. Max stepped briskly outside, following the winding paved path towards the Fairy Tail Guild's personal mailbox. Opening it with a click, he removed multiple envelopes, looking over the multiple pieces of mail that his Guild was now receiving. He passed over several bills — it seems even without those lost to Tenrō Island, his guildmates still managed to cause their own brand of destruction — and his eyes fell on a letter that stood out from the rest. It was brightly coloured, richly embroidered, and addressed...to him?

Max blinked rapidly. Certainly, he'd misread it. But no, there it was, plain as day.

_Max Alors_  
_Fairy Tail Guild_  
_Magnolia Town, Fiore_

He didn't know anyone who would send a letter that almost looked as if it had been sent from the Royal Family. Sure, he was considered a hero in Fiore, but he wasn't so important that he'd receive a letter like this. The sandy-haired man's hands trembled as he placed the other items back into the box, and opened his own letter with equally trembling digits.

_Max Alors,_

_You have humbly been extended an invitation by the Queen Regnant of the Holy Kingdom of Desierto. In light of your deeds concerning the recent state of events in Fiore, and the untimely death of the late Prince Consort, the Queen has selected you as a potential candidate for marriage; an ceremony most important to the people of Desierto, where the Queen takes a husband and chooses a new Prince._

_Therefore, an invitation has been extended towards yourself as a potential Candidate, and to your Guild itself, whom the Queen is most interested in meeting._

_If these terms are found agreeable, merely send this letter back, signed with your signature._

_Duly, the Vizier of the Holy Empire of Desierto._

Even Max could tell the penmanship was beautiful, and it was mirrored the writing on the face of the envelope. Yet the skill of the writer — who clearly did this sort of thing for a living — was the least interesting factor in all of this. He, Max Alors, was being invited to Desierto as a potential candidate for the Queen Regnant herself? He read, and re-read the letter multiple times, refusing to believe it was addressed to him, and yet there it was plain as day.

He might actually need to sit down.

* * *

The Sandstorm mage stumbled back into the Guild, moving almost absentmindedly. various letter and papers clutched in his hands. He handed the Guild requests and documents from the Council to Kinana, who worked as the barmaid and handled these sort of daily Guild tasks in the absence of Mirajane, who the job usually fell to, before taking a seat on the nearest wooden tool, his own personal letter still in head. Max had taken to re-reading it the entire way back up the path, and still wasn't completely sure it had been meant for him and not Doranbolt or someone else.

Yet his name was still there, no matter how many times he tried to view the latter in a different lighting, check the ink for traces of Magic — magical ink which responded to different volumes of magical power to adjust its words and meaning were methods of secretive communication — his name, written in that fine script, remained emblazoned on the envelope. Wendy was the first one to notice something was off in the way Max moved. Perhaps she'd even noticed a difference in his scent, or maybe it was the strange scent of the envelope. Regardless, she tore herself away from Laki — who had crafted multiple sculptures that looked draconic with her Wood-Make — to peek across Max's table.

"Max? Are you alright?" The familiarity, the ease of which Wendy now addressed Max, came from their month-long partnership on the same team, if not their harrowing adventure in the Capital City, Crocus. But Wendy slid into Max's own personal bubble with the sort of ease a good friend would, which was all fine and well. Gone was her meekness and shyness, at least around her immediate team members. "You don't look like you're doing well."

"I..."

Words failed Max. The talkative, boisterous, centre-of-attention Max was at a loss for words for the first time in anyone's memory. He didn't seem as if he knew how to phrase it, and so Max handed Wendy the delicately decorated envelop, which she took in small thin hands. Her eyes ran over the words quickly, confusion etching itself onto her face with every word she read. The Dragon Slayer looked up from the letter to Max, who was grinning weakly now.

"Is something wrong with Max?" Doranbolt had seemingly teleported towards the two of them — would he use his magic to skip walking a few feet? — interested in the development. The normal babble throughout the Guild Hall had died down; it normally wasn't anything strange to see members of Team Wendy gathering, but either everyone instinctively knew something was different, or more likely, Team Robyn and their leader with his Dragon Slayer's hearing knew something was up, and pointed it out to the Guild at large.

Though the expression on Bobbie's face might imply she was the culprit instead.

Wendy handed the letter to Doranbolt, who took it with a look of confusion.

"Read it aloud," Max suggested helpfully.

Max Alors," Doranbolt began to read the contents of the letter aloud to the Guild at large, repeating the same message that Max had read to himself. "You have humbly been extended an invitation by the Queen Regnant of the Holy Kingdom of Desierto. In light of your deeds concerning the recent state of events in Fiore, and the untimely death of the late Prince Consort, the Queen has selected you as a potential candidate for marriage; an ceremony most important to the people of Desierto, where the Queen takes a husband and chooses a new Prince. Therefore, an invitation has been extended towards yourself as a potential Candidate, and to your Guild itself, whom the Queen is most interested in meeting. If these terms are found agreeable, merely send this letter back, signed with your signature. Duly, the Vizier of the Holy Empire of Desierto." It was read in nearly a single breath, Doranbolt betraying no further emotion, if he was feeling anything new from the development at all.

Silence.

Complete, utter stillness followed the reading of this letter. For nearly a full minute, no one reacted. Until, at the same time, nearly everyone had the same reaction.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!"

* * *

**A/N:  
Demod20: **_This was a chapter to help cap off the previous one. Jellal's story is told, and he's very much distraught from recent events. He's not completely over it, but he's finally given the push he needs to start getting better. Meredy herself has never had actual friendly interactions, and to be in a place that welcomes her as 'family' is a concept almost foreign to her since her parents have died. It's just a nice bag of wholesome that helps embrace these two as members of Fairy Tail, and feelz are abound. I approved of my co-author's use of taking a month timeskip, and give us an estimate of what the Cast has been up to, helping show signs of self improvement and backing up their word given to people like Jason._

**LastationLover5000:**_This was a really good chapter to do. After explaining exactly how Jellal would up here, getting him to join was still the matter at hand. My co-author is damn good at emotional moments — moreso than I am, as I'm still trying to process exactly what human emotions are half the time — and he killed it. I'm looking forward to Jellal and Meredy as members of the Fairy Tail Guild so much. My section was simpler, but it served as set-up very well, and I had quite a bit of fun using the month-long timeskip to establish what the cast has been doing. We'll see you all soon!_


	15. Welcome to Paradise!

**Chapter 15 - Welcome to Paradise!**

**Written by LastationLover5000 and Demod20**

* * *

The stunned, surprised reaction from the entire Guild was almost unanimous. Whatever anyone had expected their attention to be drawn to — and even if it involved Max — they hadn't expected something like _this_. It wasn't out of the ordinary for royalty to entertain Guilds as guests, that much was true, but two things made this invitation even more of a swerve.

For starters, it was from a foreign nation. It would have been a different matter entirely if the Royal Family of Fiore was inviting any Guild from their nation to their halls; that's why seeking Fairy Tail's help had not unheard of before. Hisui and her father were neither the first royals of Fiore, nor would they be the last, to seek Guilds or individual mages for their employ. But for a foreign dignitary to send a message to a Guild from another country? That was unheard of. These matters were usually best left to local guilds. The fact that Desierto was inviting mages from a foreign guild baffled everyone present.

Secondly, the letter's contents themselves; it wasn't simply a request for their Guild. If anything, that would have made this slightly less strange.

No, the letter was an invitation to _Max_ specifically, naming him as a potential marriage candidate to the Queen Regnant of Desierto herself. It was _that _stipulation, more than anything else, which had elicited the reaction of shock from the Fairy Tail Guild members.

Macao, doing his best to act as Master, walked over towards Doranbolt, motioning for the letter. Doranbolt handed it to him without protest, and, despite the fact that Doranbolt had just read it aloud, Macao read it to himself. Once, twice, and then a third time. "The envelope, please?" Macao inspected the back of the envelope when it was handed to him, checking for any sign of fraud that he could recognise. He found none.

Instead, attached to the back of the envelope was the wax seal of the Royal House of Desierto.

There could be no doubt. The invitation, and all of this implications, were authentic.

Yet this merely opened the floodgates for the questions yet again? Why Max? For a husband candidate no less? Why invite their Guild as a whole specifically? Macao handed the letter and envelop back to Max, before heading to take a seat on the bar table, legs crossed. He looked thoughtful, and — though no one would say it out loud — for the first time, like an actual Guild Master. Macao needed to think, and to do that, he needed to concentrate; the man conjured Purple Flare, coursing the deep-hued blaze through his fingertips, practically juggling the fire around the digits.

It was an exercise to help him concentrate, one that Wakaba was familiar with, yet the Guild Members might have instead seen as foolishness. After a moment's more deliberation, Macao spoke again.

"The most important thing to establish first...is what Max thinks of all of this," Macao decided finally, looking down on Max from his perch. The Flare extinguished itself with the grip of Macao's hand, and he rested his chin on his knuckles, his elbow digging into his left leg. "The invitation is for you, kid! We're just your tag-alongs. How are you going to respond to it?"

"I don't know why _anyone_ would be interested in me," Max replied after a moment's hesitation. He ran his hands through his bowl-cut hair, as if the action would assuage his own concerns. Before he'd become a Mage of Fairy Tail, he hadn't been able to reach out to anyone; he remembered quite vividly the pain of being alone. So now, even here, surrounded by friends, it was a strange feeling to be _wanted_. He scratched his head, deciding firmly that it wasn't _him_ they wanted, but the Hero of Fiore. "...I guess this is the price of popularity?" He chuckled ruefully.

"It's not a bad trade," Doranbolt said simply.

"Doranbolt!" Wendy gasped, shocked.

"I'm just speaking from a pragmatic standpoint," Doranbolt said lightly, shrugging even. "A mage's life isn't always thankful, and the reward isn't always that great. We were lucky last time to have won as we did. Max may want to think of his future; even if it's one proposed by someone he doesn't know." There wasn't a hint of maliciousness in his voice; he was genuinely concerned for the man he now considered his friend.

"That's why, I want to meet her," Max grinned in spite of himself, blushing sheepishly. He knew that he might not have a chance to meet a woman on his own, so against his better judgement — and being the furthest thing from a gentleman, he had to admit — he was willing to respond to the invitation and meet the Queen of Desierto. "It's only proper people meet each other before they decide anything that amazing as marriage, queen or not, right?"

Wendy looked concerned, as if she didn't think Max was doing this for the right reasons either. Doranbolt smiled, tight-lipped.

From his seat on the bar, Macao grinned. "Well then, that settles _that_ much," he said easily. "Now comes the matter of Guild attendance. Our Guild has been invited to visit Desierto, and I'd take that to mean all of us; I don't think it would be wise, however, to leave the Guild entirely unattended." Macao mulled over the new Guilds that had been attempting to rise to fame in the absence of Fairy Tail's strongest mages, and knew that they would simply love an attempt to dismantle the Guild Building with the Master and every single mage away in another country. Grinning broadly, anticipating the chaos, he asked, "Who wants to take the trip, and who volunteers to stay behind?"

The uproar was instantaneous. Near immediately, everyone began to stake their claim, pleading their case to not be left behind, and it was hard to hear the individual voices over the massive uproar. The only individuals who weren't joining in were the members of Team Robyn and Team Wendy — the former due to apparent disinterest, the latter because they would follow Max wherever he went. He was their teammate, after all. Macao waited a moment for the battle to die down, that moment stretching from a minute, into four, into seven, until he stood up on the bar table and let loose a Purple Flare above him, stopping it just short of the ceiling.

This got their attention.

"I understand everyone's excitement," Macao called over the dying hubbub of his Guild. "And believe me, if there was a way for all of us to go, I'd take you all. But we cannot afford to leave the Guild unattended, so one some of you will need to be selfless and stay behind!"

"Why don't you practise what you preach and stay behind yourself, old man?" grinned Wakaba.

"A-As the Master, with the bulk of our Guild visiting a foreign country, it's my responsibility to travel with them!" replied Macao, red in the face at being caught in a hypocrisy. "I'm certainly not going because I want to see the famed beauties of the desert country!"

"Dad!" Little Romeo interjected, looking affronted. "I don't want a street lady for a mom!"

A silence was immediately followed by another uproar. Macao had almost inspired them all for a moment, but with his true intentions laid bare, the entire Guild had gone back to arguing with each other. Some, like Mickey Chickentiger, were simply demanding a chance to get out and see the world. Others, like Warren Rocko, wanted time away from work and saw it as as a chance to relax. And there were others, like Jet and Droy, who just wanted a distraction.

In defiance of all the clamour, Wendy squeezed through the crowd, over to where Robyn sat, surprised by his utter ease and disinterest. "Robyn, why aren't you trying to fight for your spot in the trip?"

"Not interested," Robyn replied tersely, lifting another mug of ale to his lips. This close, Wendy realised the boy wasn't drunk at all — no blush to his cheeks, no slur in his voice. Was he acting earlier?

"W-What?!"

"I'll pass," Robyn said again after a gulp of alcohol. "I'm not going to some stinkin' royal's husband selection ceremony. You guys have fun helping Max fight the single life, but keep me out; unless you want me to depose the monarchy—"

"We _don't—"  
_  
"Then I don't wanna!" Robyn replied, puffing his cheeks and shaking his head in firm denial.

Wendy wanted Robyn to come with them. Whether it was because he was a fellow Slayer, or because she had someone else her height to talk to around the Guild, Wendy wanted Robyn to come along as a companion. The Dragon Slayer puffed out her own cheeks in frustration, trying to work out a way in her head to convince Robyn. As ever, Doranbolt came to her rescue.

"There's free food," the man said, slyness coating every syllable.

Robyn put down his mug.

"We'd likely get lots of entertainment there," Doranbolt continued, playing into Robyn's own vices as if he knew them personally.

Robyn's eyes began to glisten slightly, the eagerness apparent, even if he was fighting to keep his face straight.

"Who knows? Maybe we could force her to pay for inconveniencing us, after we so graciously saved their kingdom's coffers. Might take some tactful diplomacy—"

"-or we could rub it in their faces!" Robyn interrupted, his face breaking into a malicious grin, revealing bright white teeth. "OK, you've twisted my arm!" Turning his attention to the tumult of bodies, he shouted, "OK EVERYONE, I WANT TO GO TOO!" And so, if anything, the chaos doubled.

Wendy's expression was torn between a smile and a frown. "Thanks, Doranbolt...though I wish he had better reasons for going."

"It's all about the right words," replied Doranbolt, smiling in spite of himself.

"I think he was merely looking for an excuse," supplied Eris, the same motherly smile she always wore on her face as she watched Robyn practically throw himself into the chaos, slapping a nearby Chico C Hammitt in the face with a rush of cold water, briefly reattaining his scaled appearance. "You're living in his head, rent-free, Wendy." She didn't mean it as an insult, continuing to smile in a way to assuage Wendy's confusion. "In our free time, or on missions, he talks about you frequently. Once all of _that_ started, he kept slipping aside glanced towards everyone. I think he wanted to go as well, but didn't want to seem too excited."

"Robyn..." Surprised, and slightly touched, Wendy smiled gently at the tangle of bodies that was her Guild, where Robyn was buried inside, assuredly hitting someone new.

"He won't like you telling her that," Bobbie said, a small grin on her face as well.

"B-But it's honest!" replied Eris, suddenly flustered.

Wendy giggled. It was obvious that Eris and Bobbie cared for Robyn, each in their own strange way. If Eris was the mother, Bobbie was the aunt. "Robyn is lucky to have you two."

The chaos continued to descend into violence, of which Macao had no real control. As the situation spiraled further, no one heard the opening of Fairy Tail's double doors. Joey Fullborn, almost on instinct, turned to swing at the new arrival...

...only to find his fist blocked effortlessly by Jellal, who, far from being caught by surprise, gripped Joey and countered, flipping the musclebound man easily onto his back. Jellal blinked rapidly, his narrow eyes surveying the chaos his Guild was in the middle of: thrown chairs, flipped tables, cracked pillars, and worse, bodies strewn everywhere, exhausted but not severely damaged. Heaving a sigh, he could only form the words reluctantly.

"...I'm back? Did I miss something?"

Meredy, who had trailed behind him, bore witness to the utter wreckage of the interior of the Guild, and shuddered. She fought back the impulse to defend herself, the scene she was witnessing to her brought up memories of an attack rather than the banter and roughhousing of friendly comrades. Her face soured, the small woman looking up at Jellal. "Whatever we missed, I'm glad we did."

"J-Jellal, welcome back," Macao laughed unevenly. Chaos was the bread and butter of Fairy Tail, after all, even without their most troublesome members. However, he'd wanted his newer Guild members — even though they'd already been here a month — to have a better impression, so he felt a slight semblance of shame. "Honestly, it's a long story, but let me explain." The Fourth Guild Master of Fairy Tail explained everything to do with Max's letter from Desierto, the legitimacy of the Royal Seal, and the contents held inside. "And so, we were trying to decide who would remain behind, so that as much of the Guild could go as poss—"

"We'll stay," Jellal cut Macao off, surprising the man in that single instance with such an assured statement. There wasn't any hesitation in the man volunteering away any chance at leisure for what was essentially glorified house-sitting. "Meredy and I will stay behind and guard the Guild," Jellal continued. _This is just fine...what I need isn't a vacation...I need more work...or I'll let my mind dwell on you, Erza..._

"Am I being volunteered for something without you even asking?" Meredy pursed her, annoyance crossing her face. She didn't mind staying behind to guard the Guild with Jellal — no, Desierto was certainly not her scene — Meredy just wished Jellal had spoken with her before volunteering her for guard duty. Huffing, the young girl balked at the imploring expression on Jellal's face. She didn't need Maguility Sense to understand his emotions here; Jellal desperately wanted to be of use to the Guild in any way, and if he could give them a brief reprieve — one that everyone desperately needed — then staying behind meant nothing to him.

"Hrm..." Meredy groaned. "We'll stay then, Master."

"Thank you, Meredy," it was Jellal who answered with a smile before Macao could even respond.

"I accept that readily, Jellal!" grinned Macao, before suddenly becoming stern. "But don't use this as an excuse to overwork yourself." He pointed a finger firmly at the younger man. "Do light jobs; I want you to be our Guild's primary defender. Meredy, regular correspondence, please; if he tries to do too much at once, I want to know. I will reprimand him when we return."

"Of course, Master," replied Meredy, a hint of smugness on her face now. "You'll know if he so much as blinks wrong."

"W-Wait, I didn't agree to that—" Jellal protested.

"Then we're even," Meredy said, a small smile on her face. "We'll be house-sitting together, Jellal!"

* * *

**Later That Evening, Max's Apartment**

Max eased himself onto the soft cushioning of his bed, his back to the wall, thumb on his pointed chin. Everything was arranged. He had given a formal reply, and sent it back to Desierto by messenger. After that, Macao had discussed with the Guild their method of transportation; they would take a train, specifically from Fiore to the outskirts of their country border. There were few trains that traveled that far, but some did exist, and they would be taking one of the better trains.

_Perks of being Fairy Tail,_ Max chuckled wryly. _But still...a husband candidate for the Queen of Desierto? That's a little..._ He sighed. "It's all so over the top. I'm still not sure they haven't made a mistake of some kind. And what if, even after I do meet her..." His words trailed off, yet his thoughts availed him no freedom. He couldn't speak the words aloud, it felt almost childish to admit a fear like this to himself. But the thoughts wouldn't leave his head. _What if I actually want this to become something more...and she rejects me? Believes I'm not up to her taste, or something? _The Sand Mage shuddered involuntarily at the idea. Long before he joined Fairy Tail, Max hadn't had the best childhood. Beyond his parents, who, while he couldn't say they didn't care for him, were almost neutral to his existence, he'd had no relationships, no friends, no significant others of any sort. Choosing the path of a Mage — when he found he'd had a talent for Magic — only distanced himself further from his parents. They had wanted him to take up a 'respectable' career, to help provide for their family and improve their station.

_They didn't want a charlatan as their son..._ The words stabbed at Max's heart. But he was set on becoming a Mage. It was the only thing he had talent, he had aptitude for. Eventually, in search of a place to call home, a place where he could refine his skills, Max had traveled to Magnolia. He'd heard of a Guild, Fairy Tail, the strongest Guild in the country. Perhaps that was where he could stake his claim in the world, and his parents would take back what they said.

Instead of finding an institution of powerful Mages, Max had found something else entirely.

He'd found a family.

Fairy Tail had welcomed him without a second thought. Ever eager for new members, they'd accepted him without asking about his personal history, his intentions, or anything. It was love and welcome without measure, and Max had never felt anything of the sort before. Makarov, who treated all of the members in the Guild as if they were his children, was a like a father to him, in a way his own father had never been. He taught Max lessons, counseled the young man when he'd made mistakes, and lifted him up when he succeeded. Tears staining his eyes, Max cursed the fact that he hadn't been there on Tenrō Island, to help his father in some way.

_I wouldn't be where I am without my Guild, my family_, Max clenched a hand over his heart. _But for someone else to be interested in me at all...it's a different kind of feeling...I don't want to mess this up...!_ Tied up by emotions he didn't know how to deal with, Max slumped against the wall, gritting his teeth. To his friends, this was just a vacation — and he desperately wanted them to enjoy themselves — but to him, this could be life-changing. Easing himself onto his bed, neglecting to even remove his day clothes for nightclothes, Max looked up at the ceiling.

_I'll try to make this work! This could be what I've been waiting for...! _With these thoughts, Max allowed sleep to take him.

* * *

**The Day of Departure, Fairy Tail Guild Hall**

The fateful day to leave approached at a crawl. After a three day delay — much of which the entire Guild spent packing, loading clothes and other traveling supplies into rucksacks — Desierto had responded to Max's correspondence. When they reached the border between Desierto and Fiore, the response letter stated they would be greeted by an envoy. Various routes, trade routes included, to get to Desierto were currently limited; bandits lurking within the dunes had made it difficult for supplies to travel from other countries into Desierto in recent months, and the country had begun employing various Guilds — usually those from the countries they were currently trading with — to deliver their goods.

Having agreed on the terms with Desierto, the entire Guild was getting ready now. The past three days hadn't been enough for everyone to pack everything they needed. Some of the Guild members hadn't even been sure the response was going to come, doubtful, even slightly, of its legitimacy. Max, ironically, had been the last one to be completely ready for the trip. He'd agonised over clothing decisions, colognes and other various means of up-keep, and was the very last person into the Guild Hall, carrying a large pack, and heaving wildly.

Everyone who had gathered was wearing something different, something unique for the heat; even by train, and switching to a caravan once they'd hit the border, it would take three days proper to reach the heart of Desierto. No one wanted to change clothes around each other, except perhaps Robyn and Bobbie, neither of whom had much sense of decorum. Max himself had dressed in a looser, white collared shirt, and simple jeans. Nothing too impressive, but Max had dressed this way in an effort to say "this is me".

Wendy had opted for a simple yet beautiful in its design. A rosy pattern was sewn around a flat collar, leaving her neck and collarbones exposed while a satin white dress ended just shy of her lower thighs in a simple tube-shape. The front pattern was a crisscross blue over a lighter azure that it bordered down the middle to a navy trimmed light of dull gold around the skirt's hem. Wearing brown sandals and a jingling pair of silver rings, her sleeveless arms swayed casually with the flow of her red neck-hairpieces that affixed them into her standard twintaills. It was made of looser material than her standard outfits, and Doranbolt had purchased it specifically for her to wear on this trip.

Doranbolt, almost as if he'd wanted to pick out a similar outfit, had adorned himself a brown dress shirt, patterned with similar diamond-shapes to Wendy's dress, merely covering the entirety of the cloth, faded black pants, and simple trainers.

Robyn, however, made no adjustments to his current outfit beyond strapping a belt to his thin waist, attached to which were five large canteens of water. When asked, the young man had said derisively, "We're going to a desert. I am a Water Dragon Slayer. I think I'm going to be just a little out of my element!" The most interesting, however, was Bobbie, who still wore the foreign outfit she had from three days ago, although it appeared new and freshly laundered.

"Bobbie..." Max said slowly, swinging his rucksack over his shoulder and eyeing her suspiciously. "How convenient that you were dressed three days ago for a trip none of us knew we were taking...and are still wearing that outfit even now."

"Oh, I read the letter ahead of time," replied Bobbie simply.

"...waityouwhat?" The words stumbled from Max's mouth before he had a proper register of what he was saying, but the confusion and incredulity remained. Max tried to formulate the image in his head; Bobbie strolling out to their mailbox at the earliest hour, rifling through the box, reading the post not sent to her with no reaction to not arouse the slightest bit of suspicion, and then returning to the Guild and changing into the maddeningly sexy outfit she was wearing right now. "How did you...?"

"I am an assassin," Bobbie said slyly. "I'd be ashamed if I couldn't do at least that much."

"You stand out too much for an assassin," Doranbolt said dryly, looking over Bobbie's attire with an unreadable expression. It was times like these when Doranbolt and Charle were on the same page: _She's a bad influence for Wendy_.

"This in and of itself is a weapon," Bobbie shrugged, before pointing at her body, making shapes with the air. "Most men are all the same, after all — exceptions perhaps like yourself and our little blue bird. They see _this_ and their mental faculties drop completely. Killing after that is easy."

Charle made a face, disgust clearly crossing her countenance, yet she couldn't find the words to come out of her throat. _Is she the hussy that Robyn learned how to be a hussy from?!_

"How am I an exception?" asked Doranbolt, irritation crossing his face.

"I'm not quite sure where your interests lie yet," was Bobbie's simple reply.

"What are you insin—"

"Enough!" Macao clapped his hands before the argument could escalate, walking between the two of them, both palms at either side. With a quick, and sudden burst of Purple Flare — comparable to the speed of a fired bullet — the two were thrown back from each other. The Purple Flare sparked at the end of both his hands, an added warning to the two charges of Fairy Tail's Guild, and Macao put on his best stern expression. "We're going to be traveling as a Guild, and as long as we're traveling as a single unit, we will need to get along. Please try not to rile each other up."

Doranbolt eyed Bobbie with annoyance; Bobbie's return glance was mischievous in return. Whether she still held a grudge against the man for defeating her wasn't obvious in her actions; she could just be teasing the man. Slowly, the both of them nodded, and Macao grinned broadly.

"Excellent!" Turning to speak towards the Guild, he cleared his throat. There was a surge of magical power, and his voice was magnified, carrying across the entire building. It was a simple spell, and Macao had picked it up only recently, after realising he needed a way to make his Guild listen to him more. "Everyone! This marks the beginning of our journey to Desierto! Though the Guild is traveling largely for the chance to see the world, and to experience new places, this trip is in, at it's core, about Max here! The Fairy Tail Guild treasures its comrades, and this could be a turning point in Max's life: whatever we do, when we arrive in Desierto, _we will support him however we can!_ Now let's make this a trip to remember!"

The entire Guild cheered, stunning Max to his core. He still didn't know what to make of everything, and his nerves had been racking for three days straight. Hearing his Guild cheer for him, and intend to support him felt like a drop of a warm liquid straight into his stomach. It filled him with a sort of strength that he didn't think he had, and he smiled in spite of himself. With the shift in energy from his friends' words, Max joined the cheering.

Pushing open the double doors of the Fairy Tail Guild Building, led by Macao himself, the Fairy Tail mages journeyed out, leaving only Jellal and Meredy at their posts.

"We really joined quite a crowd," Meredy noted. Her face was impassive, and not possessing Maguility Sense himself, Jellal couldn't quite place the girl's feelings.

"We did...but I'm glad you pushed me to do it," he admitted, a long sigh escaping his throat. "Alright, Meredy. We've got our own work to do!"

* * *

In no time flat, the Guild left Magnolia, boarding the nearest train that'd route them to the assigned rendezvous point. From there they knew they were to meet up with a royal escort across the neighboring country's arid land, ensuring their travel would be safe and comfortable. Getting them all in was its own challenge, however, as there was so many of them that they weren't all going to be able to be together throughout the passage. It would take three days, so they'd have to get comfortable on the Lacrima-powered vehicle all the way to their destination.

As they boarded, Wendy saw Mickey wrestling with Warren for a place on his car, only for Macao using Purple Flare to separate them. Wakaba had to corral Bisca away from Nab for not being able to decide which car he wanted to pick. Reedus's current outfit made it difficult to get into the transport which was its own hassle while little Romeo helped push him in from behind with his dad's help.

It was hectic, but Wendy couldn't help but feel like something about the wonderment of the situation was weighed out by something important. Looking back she saw citizens of Magnolia who were all more than acquainted with the heroics and feats the mages had done since before she even joined. Waving them off, Macao took time to give something resembling an inspiring speech while Wakaba finished getting everyone in the train.

Before she entered she couldn't help but draw her eyes to a recognizable man in shabby clothes worn almost like a moddled-merchant's cloat with a patchwork top-hat. The man was grinning her way, tipping her said hat while winking her way, mouthing something that she could make out as if it was whispered into her ears.

"I told you so."

Shaking it off, she boarded the train, choosing to believe it was her mind playing tricks on her. It was nerves, that had to be it.

With a loud whistle from the conductor, the train revved up the Lacrima engine and began to haul its large assemblage of people to its far-flung destination. Wendy joined with those of the aforementioned 'Team Wendy' coincidentally with Robyn and his two compatriots of 'Team Robyn'. They settled in well enough and took to the momentum of the vehicle with fair ease; it didn't even cross her mind that she should have nausea...

Wendy reclined in her seat, watching the scenery of green blend with the rolling hills and forests that dotted the area bordering the tracks. Her eyes were wide and filled with wonder. It had been some time since she had a trip, even if it was for the purpose for a mission or guild business, that left outside of Fiore. To her knowledge, many of the mages here hadn't left the country ever.

"Aw!" She awed out, pointing at the window over where Charle was seated next to her. "I think I see a cloud that looks like a funny looking dog!"

"Wendy, clouds don't look like-" Her feline companion trailed off, her eyes suddenly blinking widely. Hopping over onto Wendy's lap, her face pressed against it, squishing her wide-blinking eyes at seeing indeed a thin and long shaped dog was in the formation of clouds hanging over the sky that past them by. "Well I'll be...!"

"It's only been an hour and you're already cloud gazing?" Robyn's voice came out dryly across from her.

"But clouds are pretty," The cobalt haired Slayer countered, grinning brightly back at the boy who was seated against the window like her. "They're like Reedus's pictures, but in white fluffy shapes."

"I already get fluffy from Bobbie," The teal haired boy sighed, nudging the dancer outfit aligned breast to his immediate right, causing it to jiggle with a comical 'boing'; for what reason or another, the voluptuous woman stared into space and didn't react to the provocative gesture, allowing the Slayer to continue with a chin resting onto an open palm. "Besides, I can make more amazing things with my talents than simple kid stuff like clouds."

"Right, since you're from the Lazuli family that makes sense," Doranbolt piped up, his brown-shirt crinkling as he leaned casually against his arms folded behind his head against the cushion of the train car they were staying in. "You never did say what your specialty is."

"Specialty?" Robyn blinked long lashes curiously back at Doranbolt. "Are you under the assumption I had a trade within my family's esteemed choice vocation?"

"Well, don't you?" Max countered, interjecting as he jabbed a finger at his pointed hat. "You already made a replacement for the last one we confiscated, right? A magic hat that sucks things in right?"

"...nah, that'd be too easy."

"What would be?"

Sighing, Robyn shook his head and withdrew an elegantly crafted wand of wood shrouded with ice-like texture to it. Twirling it between his fingers, he demonstrated its properties as it generated snowflakes into the air, smiling at the bright glint in Wendy's eyes at the beautiful fanfare he gave off.

Grinning despite himself, he tapped his own hat and replied to Max, "You're right, this is the same as the last. It took longer to make than this ice stave. Took a pretty penny out of my funds, but you'd have to admit it has plenty of uses-"

"Please don't steal while we're in Desierto."

Pouting his lips, he squinted and whined aloud at the four that stared deadpan back at him, "W-Why was that your first conclusion, guyyyyyyyyyyyyysssss?!"

"Past experience," Doranbolt rolled his eyes.

"Gut feeling," Max nodded.

"Your attitude hasn't improved much!" Charle jabbed accusingly.

"I'm just concerned for you," Wendy amended with a sheepish smile. "I don't want us making trouble. After all, we're all guests in another country, and I don't want you to make things...difficult."

With a groan he leaned against Bobbie's leftmost breast and relented aloud.

"Fine, I'll only use it for pragmatic reasons."

"Don't worry about our blue bird," Eris intoned, raising up a green-dress sleeve, pointing airily around at her two companions. "Bobbie and I had a talk and we're going to do our best to keep our leader in line. Since we only follow his lead, we want to ensure that we hold him accountable for his actions, since he's no longer ultimately in charge."

"That's comforting, I suppose," Doranbolt replied, seeing Charle ease up and Wendy place a hand on her chest with a look of relief on her face. Max, however as he noticed, still looked dubious with arms crossed over his new dress shirt.

"Oi, Eris," Robyn replied with a twitching glare from over Bobbie's cleavage. "Why are you talking like I'm not here?"

"Blue bird," Eris replied, turning around to suddenly emphasize with a sudden pressure as her pink eyes bore into his. "Don't give me an attitude, after you had lied to me all that time about who you are. Behave yourself, understand?"

"R-Right," The teal-haired Slayer backed off, melting into his seat with a resigned huff. Straightening himself, he looked back to Doranbolt with a more cool expression, brushing his bangs aside as he decidedly explain the process.

"My craft is modeling, changing and creating Holder Magic Tools," He began, twirling the stave for emphasis. "The process is complex, but it's a bit different than just channeling your spirit to mold magic of your given type. The base of the object has to be threaded by Lacrima, so that it can contain a current of Ethernano and perform the miracle you're seeking. Some items need to be fine tuned so they can properly draw on the user's power, otherwise they may accidentally drain them dry."

"I-I see," Max sweated a bit, realizing just how screwed he'd be if he touched the wrong item and suddenly he was sucked like a vampire to blood.

"The Council contracts many people across the continent for the most pristine Holder Items to be used, en masse if necessary," Doranbolt informed the others, smiling as he lifted a finger to point at Wendy. "Why even this train uses a sophisticated Steam Lacrima that powers it while also being constantly refined through a series of complex tubes that feed it fresh air for the process. Without Lacrima power cores - no matter how well they are made - no mechanism can sustain on itself without an outside power funneling through it."

Wendy remembered the disparaging technological difference between Earthland and Edolas.

Despite the latter having so many neat gadgets and equipment powering the capital city, it was stealing the magic of the surrounding environment and ebbing it away till none existed. In contrast, magical energy was overabundant within this world and can be manufactured to the point of it being consumed and utilized by the non-magic populace at large. One had a container of magical energy, while the other just stole energy that didn't belong to the wielder.

Then, that proffered the question in her mind.

"How is Lacrima made?" Wendy inquired.

"It's a simple but long process," Robyn answered, though with a smile on his face. "There's a special material that catalyzes elements or natural phenomena quite easily: glass. It was said the first mage found this out by catching lightning in a bottle, and found himself, along with the container, unharmed. However these days making glass often uses magic to expedite the process and shape it into whatever kind of container we wish."

"Ohhhhh," The younger Slayer awed aloud with sparkles in her eyes.

"Though there are exceptions to the ingredient. It's quite known that Iceberg can make crystalized ice to form Lacrima at incredible rates," Robyn explained, pocketing the stave back within the confines of his cloak, leaning back against his seat - causing the belt of water bottles wrapped around his normally exposed waist to jiggle - and let out a sigh as he continued speaking. "The main component of a container for magic is that it has to be something that can contain something bordering on the realms of supernatural. Some kinds of sediment, glass, ice, hardened magma, the list goes on."

"Can anyone use Holder Magic Tools?" Wendy asked, causing Charle's ears to twitch and her face forming a weird expression she didn't recognize from the corner of her eye.

Robyn noticed it, but kept his attention to Wendy as he answered her question promptly, "Well, yes and no. Theoretically anyone with magical know-how can use a Holder Magic Tool. However, aptitude is important, and everyone is born with a certain affinity that enables them to pursue a kind of craft of magic. For example, my ice stave can only be used by people with even a marginal ability in Water-type Magic, even if it hasn't been realized yet. You can't give someone a tool that doesn't align with their born talents; so I could never use a Fire-based Holder Magic Tool, and you could never use an Earth-based Holder Magic Tool."

"I see," She replied, nodding with understanding. "Here I thought magic can be learned by anyone. I guess I didn't factor in affinity and stuff like inborn talent."

"It's surprising how much the art of casting spells is closer to science than it was centuries ago," The beautiful boy spoke with a smile. His expression became wistful, looking outside for the first time and taking in the scenery in a casual observation; not truly looking at it, but thinking of something else, Wendy suspected. "My family's mastery of creating anything for the purpose of magic has taught me that nothing is outside the reach of humans, so long as you have intelligence and talent behind it. Though," He trailed off, his face becoming caged behind a colder expression the others couldn't discern. "My brother said, even with hard work, a man can't will something to exist simply because they want it bad enough. Some things in this world are impossible, even with all this magic at our convenient disposal."

It was then that Bobbie finally blinked, and looked over at Robyn. Almost seemingly out of maternal concern, she placed a hand on the effeminate boy's shoulder. He didn't brush it off, but he didn't look back towards the others as he closed his eyes and grit his teeth.

Then, the elf cleared her throat, changing the subject as she looked directly to Max.

"I'm honestly a bit worried for you, Max," Eris brought up with sincerity in her airy voice. "Are you mentally prepared for this?"

"Is any man who is told they're selected part of some convoluted royal selection process for possible husband?"

"Some desperate men are," Doranbolt intoned, unknowingly causing Robyn to visibly twitch with annoyance at his choice of words.

"It was rhetorical, of course I'm not prepared!" Max exclaimed, waving his elegant styled suit-top. It was a blue collared shirt - similar to his plain outfit he ordinarily wore, though this one had golden trim adorned to its hem, collar and cuffs - with a maroon tie with black triangles running down the length, with black suit pants and similarly colored dress shoes. Adjusting the tie as best as he could to keep it good condition, he grimaced while muttering out. "I was so wrapped up in my feelings on the matter I couldn't even find a proper set of clothes. So I just picked something and stuck with it."

"It looks nice-"

"-if you're going to a bachelor's party," Robyn added after Wendy, causing the girl to glare at him while he cheekily stuck his tongue back at her. "If he just allowed me to pick him an outfit, he could actually look presentable."

"Not even acknowledging that," Max grumbled, raising his head to look back at Eris and then over to the others. "What bugs me is that I'm a 'candidate'. That means I'm likely not even the only one. And since the Queen didn't write me, but her official next best - who if we're being real, had someone write for him - means she probably doesn't even know who I am."

"The price of fame is steep, hm?" Bobbie inquired with a curl on her lips.

"I'm surprised you aren't even affected by opinion of the masses, being an infamous assassin," Max retorted with a scowl. "Especially with your," he eyed up and down with disapproval. "_assets_."

"My infamy gets me well paid clients. My assets, as you put it, aren't ever brought up," Bobbie replied, unfettered his reply as she maintained with a confident smirk. "They know better."

Groaning, Max raised his hands and palmed his face, dragging them with long exaggerative lines that stretched his features with visible disdain. It felt wrong to him that he had to compete for the Queen's affection. Unless he read this wrong, and they're simply going to be lined up and hand picked, that's essentially what he was interpreting from the letter.

Worst, he had no nobility in his bloodline. His family weren't even known for their magic, only their work in trades such as mercantilism or specialization of some form of craft. He was the black sheep of his kin, and the fact he had gotten the spotlight was an even bigger fluke. He even considered contacting his parents when he finished the mission and became a hero; but to no surprise, they never responded, leaving him convinced this was just luck on his part.

"Don't downplay yourself," Doranbolt spoke, surprising the man as he looked shocked over at the scarred teleporter. Grinning, he continued with a nod towards Wendy and Charle. "If we didn't think you were capable, we wouldn't support you so wholeheartedly. The Guild may be going because you're part of their family, but we are going because we have faith in whatever decision you make."

"Doranbolt..." Max gasped, feeling taken aback by such encouraging words from the most pragmatic man of their team.

Charle huffed, shaking her head with a smile as she stood up to be more visible to the Sand Mage, "You proved yourself quite well in our first mission together. So I trust you'll make the right decision, regardless if you choose to stay with us or not."

"This is your chance, Doranbolt," Wendy affirmed with a bright endearing smile, bringing the focus of the dazed man straight to her sparkling amber irises. With raised fists clenched, she nodded with confidence. "This is all about you, so don't worry about anything but what you want. I'll back you up one hundred percent!"

Max felt overwhelmed.

Moisture formed in his eyes and his lips quivered. Raising a sleeve he hurriedly rubbed his leaking orifices while doing his best to hold back chokes of emotion in his words.

"T-Thanks you guys," He hiccuped, clenching his teeth behind his arm.

"Geez, what an emotional wreck you'll be before the Queen," Charle admonished, waving a paw at him motherly at him. "Try to not break down when you get selected, alright?"

"Don't you mean, if?" Doranbolt inquired with an arched brow.

"Given Max is an accomplished Mage, do you really think his competition stand a chance?" The Exceed asked with a narrowed stare at the scarred man.

The scarred man opened his mouth, but then clenched it shut. He pondered if there was a likelihood of his competition being anything short of just the usual humdrum politicians, sons of nobility or some wannabe trying to chomp more than they could chew.

Still, he wondered if Max's skills and personality would fit any criteria for what the monarchy of Desierto was looking for?

* * *

In the next few days, the Guild had enjoyed bantering and relaxing on their way to the southernmost stop possible in Fiore. Cars were served with top of the line service, providing them nice bunk-rooms for them to rest and gourmet food all while taking in the scenery of the southern half of the countryside. Each city looked less large than the last, showing just how rural the earth was becoming and less established.

Wendy spent time helping Max keep being motivated while asking questions from Robyn about different aspects of magic. In return, Robyn explained much to her delight different facets of the craft of Lacrima, magical tools' multiple purposes and different projects he was considering. Bobbie continued to have odd bouts of staring off into space, never truly falling asleep like the rest of them did; she explained it was to keep herself constantly aware and gain the necessary rest without shutting down her senses. Eris just seemed to enjoy conversing with the others, doting on Robyn while giving advice to Max all the while ensuring Bobbie didn't make smothering advances to Wendy due to her liking of cute things.

Mickey Chickentiger was roomed with Vijteer Ecor, Nab Lasaro, and Chico C. Hammit in the car immediately behind Team Wendy and Robyn's. The four frequently bickered, with Mickey often retaliating against Nab's persistence of not being able to decide on anything. From what Wendy saw, Mickey sported a black furred pair of cat gauntlets, her overall decorum maintained tiger prints but now over a black tank-top that left her lower back and waist exposed, with orange-slacks with similar tiger print on it that was complemented by black boots and cat ears on her blonde head. Nab wore his usual sleeveless jacket and skull necklaced attire, as he yet again couldn't decide what he wanted to change into before the trip so he didn't make a change. Chico wore a sleeveless red hoodie with the same cat-like hood akin to her hat, while wearing a backpack which she described as 'pieces of home' so she wouldn't be rendered completely useless.

The car ahead of them booked Laki Olietta, Reedus Jonah, Alzack Connell and Bisca Mulan. They seemed to get along nicely, with Laki having frequent conversations with Bisca which helped alleviate the tension that Alzack was having with her as of late. Reedus spent most of his time making casual banter as he painted things he observed, noticeably having much more detailed artwork in a shorter period of time they'd notice. Alzack, Bisca and Reedus didn't seem to change their attire motif for this adventure, but Laki chose to dress more cool, so she wore a cream colored coat and a short-sleeved version of her normal conservative blue-trimmed white coat, with a short blue skirt and navy blue stockings; her hair had grown in the past month past its bowl cut, and now was its normal wavy length, adorned with a red bow that Wendy complimented as cute.

In the middle of the train was Kinana, Romeo and Macao Conbolt, Wakaba Mine, Jet, Droy, Warren Rocko and Joey Fullborn. Being the other largest reserved car, this left the two senior members of the Guild to be roomed with Romeo and Kinana, taking personal responsibility to look after them since they knew they weren't mages. Romeo continued to study avidly, much to Macao's delight and pride, while Kinana just moved around and tried to be helpful any way she could. Jet and Droy changed their clothes to match the climate, with Jet wearing a bowler hat with a short-sleeved collared purple shirt along with black shorts and black shoes; Droy wore a sleeveless white shirt with a baggy brown pair of pants with an assortment of pockets stored up with seeds for his magic. Warren wore an orange pineapple T-shirt, with white shorts and sandals, while Joey chose to go topless - reasoning that it was imperative for his magic to function - while wearing palm-tree shorts and polka-dotted fingerless gloves to feel more outgoing and festive.

The trek flew by faster than they anticipated. Through all their time mingling and enjoying the luxury of the train cars traversing across their home country, they chose to relax and mingle in their own way. Before anyone knew it, almost 72 hours had passed and they reached the end of their destination.

"ATTENTION EVERYONE! THIS IS YOUR STOP! THE ONLY PLACE WE HAVE LEFT WILL BE A SUPPLY DEPOT AND THEN WE'LL HEAD BACK! DON'T MAKE US WAIT!"

"Charming fellows," Charle commented with a sigh, floating out while Doranbolt held luggage over his back in a parallel to Bobbie doing the same. Wendy carried a briefcase full of her own essentials, with Max having a wheeled variant that he pulled behind himself. Robyn himself just strut in exaggerative strides, his legs swishing noticeably to highlight his supple stocking-clad legs while his cloak swished around with his pointed hat bobbing with his head as his waist-bandoleer of water bottles splished with its liquid containers. Eris meanwhile held a knapsack over one shoulder, humming a melodic tune that no one could make out as it drifted along the air with an occasional whistle breaking from her lips.

As they exited their car onto the station, a rush of warm hair filled with greenery filled their nostrils. The station looked as if it was built into a municipal shopping district, with smaller buildings spreading out with streets and people scurrying about. Apart from the various villages and trading outposts they've saw on the way by, doubtlessly many dotting across the lushly sylvanic nation, this was undoubtedly the largest city down near the border.

"Whoa, it's so big!" Wendy blinked with an open mouth.

Robyn couldn't help but snicker at her word choice, only for Eris to shoot him a glare; prompting him to avert his gaze and whistle innocently.

"I wonder if we can get more clothes here?" Bobbie inquired in her usual monotone.

"Wait, don't you have enough?" Max inquired, noticing the very large pack full of adjacent compartments that seemed to be added on to the base duffel material. It could've been mistaken as a military pack for soldiers in the wilderness, or someone who was avid to trek across places for days at a time.

"These are for the bird," She replied succinctly, not even batting an eye at Max's expression. "All of my necessities are stored away in my Requip."

"Oh...huh, I forgot you had that," He scratched his cheek...only for him to then lurch back and ask with wide eyes. "Wait, why didn't you store that in the Requip too?!"

"To avoid mixing up our things."

"But, you have to carry something that looks to be over a hundred pounds!"

"It's really not that bad," Bobbie answered matter-of-fact, nonchalantly brushing off the sandy-haired man's incredulous reactions. As she shrugged, both metaphorically and physically, her breasts bounced and drew Max's attention to their jingling, swaying motions.

His reddened face turned away and he clenched his teeth as he tried to regain his composure, much to Bobbie's smirking humor.

Thankfully, the rest of the Guild soon piled out - with Doranbolt assisting everyone in retrieving Reedus and teleporting him out instead of having to squeeze him back outside - Macao stood at the head with Wakaba flanking him.

"Alright!" The man turned around, his trademark blue-trimmed white coat flourishing around as his hand twisted about. "We're here not to sight-see, but meet up an escort. Keep an eye out for them, they can't be far."

"You'd think they'd be watching out for us," Wakaba intoned with a grim thin line. "Did we just miss them?"

"Hey," Romeo tugged on his dad's coat, pointing his finger off to the corner of what looked like a bazaar assortment of tents camped out near the entrance of the train station's connection to the shopping complex; the large rectangular-octagonal architecture was a sharp contrast to the smooth squares of fabric and elegant gold trim over red and black colors. "Could that be them?"

"They don't seem to be like a part of the station or the town's stores," Kinana noted, the short-haired waitress looking at the tents with peering eyes.

"Well, let's investigate," Macao thumbed over to the rest of the Guild for them to follow. Marching ahead by ten meters, the four walked casually up to the mysterious looking tent that definitely held a foreign air about it. Once they got within a handful of meters, a shrouded figure of ebony emerged, dark eyes staring at the master and stopping the rest by his mere aura he held.

"Fairy Tail, I presume?" He spoke with an even, cool tone.

"Yes, that's us," Master Conbolt replied, grinning as he reached out a hand to shake the other's. "Pleased to meet ya."

The man turned raised his hands, calloused fingers forming a triangle and bowing his head towards him, muttering a peculiar phrase.

"Blessings be upon you," He intoned, lowering his hands to his sides. "My name is Kaseem Aladrah. Apologies, but by our customs, only loved ones or politicians shake hands. I am merely your guide."

"Ah, no, that was presumptuous of me!" Macao drew his hand back to his head, scratching it nervously as he laughed just as much. "So, did you happen to book a ship or another route across inland?"

"That would take too long, and her grace doesn't like waiting," The man replied, turning back to the tent and grabbing its front flap. Raising a finger, he muttered something under his breath and pulled.

What happened took the whole guild's breath away.

Out from the colorful tent emerged an enormous pair of swelling wings of golden decorum, unfurling outward while a faux head of a draconic effigy spirited out. As it grew in mass, where the abdomen of this golden creature's midsection would've been contained a large three story tall by five train cars long carriage. The wings themselves had multiple engines with balls of Lacrima infused into the containers, with similar propulsors spread around its belly and behind the tail. The head itself looked to be the pilot's chair, with a man who looked to be yawning as he was now just waking up from a nap he was having, adorned in similar robes to Kaseem's.

The door itself opened, and another man of deep tanned pigmentation with a white beard appeared, his red sashed-hood bristling as he grinned and waved over to the shocked, eye-bulging and mouth agape Fairy Tail mages.

"Hop on board the Divine Caravan, everyone," The bearded man said with gusto the guide hadn't expressed. "We can't keep our Queen waiting, can we?!"

"S-Sure," Macao tried to acquiesce, turning shakily to the rest with a shocked expression still on his face. "Y-You heard the man. Let's hop on board, r-right?"

"How did they hide an entire airship that massive within a small tent?" Charle asked with her face still comically oblong on her disproportionately sized body.

"Transformation Magic," Robyn replied, being among the few that recovered from the display that caused other staff of the train station and outlying shopping center to gawk. Keeping his hands behind his back, he shrugged his bare shoulders as his cloak rustled behind his back as he walked ahead sooner than the rest. "A big gauche for an airship design, but not bad coloration. At least we won't have such a long journey ahead of us."

"Do you think we're kinda causing a disturbance?" Doranbolt asked, side-glancing as he saw some of the station personnel looking visibly panicked at the sight of the newly formed vehicle. "This thing is massive, and is big enough to fit between these two massive structures. Can we even take off-?"

"You're thinking too hard," Eris patted Doranbolt's side, walking behind Robyn with Bobbie.

Blinking, Doranbolt looked down at Wendy and asked with a concerned expression, "Am I...overthinking this?"

"I think it'll be alright, if they think so," Wendy answered with a hesitant smile of her own.

"Well, at least we'll go in style," Max shrugged, marching ahead with the rest of the guild with a grin.

Sighing, the teleporter shook his head and walked ahead with Wendy and Charle side by side. Boarding the airship was its own ordeal as so many people had to be delegated by Macao so they wouldn't clog the small doorway. Just as large as the exterior appeared, it was plenty spacious on the inside, proving that it was a luxury ship in more ways than one. Red carpet smooth as silk with gold trim and ebony walls and ceilings with some paintings filling the halls. With separate bedrooms prepared with the purpose of housing up to four each, they possessed a kitchen that was already in the midst of producing wafting odors that was adjacent to a dining hall with window views that filled up all three stories of the airship carriage.

Guided to their rooms, Max was separated by the rest of his team on the bearded man's insistence.

"Uh-?" He turned to look back at Wendy, Doranbolt and Charle with hesitation.

"Is something the matter?" The man - later to be known as Bashiff, the Chief of the Airship _The Divine Caravan _\- turned to blink curiously at Max. "I was about to show you to your quarters, sir candidate."

"I...uh," Max Alors swallowed, putting on his best brave face as he smiled back to the man and nodded with understanding. "Right, understood. I just wanted to make sure my friends' quarters were accommodating."

"My, what a thoughtful gesture," Bashiff applauded with a broad smile; all the while still shuffling him away with a nod, winking back at the others as he continued to speak with him. "It is unnecessary though. You must steel yourself, as the other candidates have been reported to have already been picked up by the others across the continent. You won't always have your friends to support you, so I suggest you take the time to get used to your room; there'll be one just like it when you arrive in the palace as the examinations commence."

"About that," Max brought up, raising a finger as he inquired with a nervous grin. "What's that all about?"

"To find anyone worthy of being Prince Consort to the Queen, one must be tested vigorously and be judged by those entrusted by her grace," He explained, gesturing with grandiose flare as much as his voice brushed out of his firm lips. "You must exemplify kingly qualities, but also ensure you know what it means to be the aide to the Queen. For unlike other monarchies, Desierto prides itself with nominated kings that support our queen everlasting!"

"How long has the Queen been in charge?"

"Are you trying to discern the age of her grace?" The man scrutinized with narrowed, wrinkly eyes.

"N-No, I'm just curious about your culture!" Max implored quickly with raised hands.

Dismissing the possibly rude inquiry, the man shrugged with hands waving around, "Who can say? It is unclear if her grace has had a blessed long lifespan or has handed down her rule to daughters unseen. None of the common folk are permitted to see the Queen you see, and the only time anyone sees her is during the husband selection ceremony. Its quite the occasion, akin to a holiday and is always announced upon the late passing of the previous Prince Consort. That way, mourning doesn't come with loss, but joy for someone new to help fulfill the role with just as much dignity and flare as the previous one."

"So, no one knows for sure?" The Sandstorm Mage questioned, his brows furrowed and his face clearly expressing a dubious look.

"It is not our place to know," Bashiff confessed with a smile. "You'll know for sure if you become Prince Consort, now won't you?"

"I...guess so," Max chuckled sheepishly, as he walked in tandem with the man.

Stopping at the far-end of the first floor hallway, he saw a glamorously outlined pair of red-wooded doors with golden-dragon heads for handles. Grasping them without hesitation, Bashiff pushed them open, allowing Max to see a spectacular glass-framed view of the outside. A spacious burgundy bed with cabinets of a similar color, golden-trimmed carpet just as the rest with a skinned tiger rug at the foot of the bed and a glass chandelier hanging over the center of the room.

"This will be your quarters, sir candidate," Bashiff proclaimed, waving his wrinkled hands around while observing Max's awed expression. "I take it everything is to your liking?"

"It's...quite frankly the best room I've ever seen!" He admitted with a nervous smile. "Sorry if I sound like a...a boor? Yeah, sorry if I sound like such a common folk, but this is almost too much-!"

"No apologies necessary," The man shook his head, waving his hand dismissively. "The Queen's Visier determines the worth of potential Consorts all around the world. Once an invitation is sent, you are as valid to be judged as a noble is to a pauper. Do not discredit yourself until you fail in such a spectacular fashion, everyone will laugh at your descendants for generations!"

"...wow, that really came as the most _backhanded_ reassurance I've ever had," Max lowered his head with a grimace on his face, almost glaring at the older man.

"But you're a hero of this country, are you not?" Bashiff asked, a bright grin shared on his white-bearded, dark-tanned face as he slapped him on the back; straightening him upright from the surprising force an older man showed. "Stiff that upper lip, and be proud. I doubt you'd falter so easily if stopping those brigands that dared to harm her grace's treasury in such a way, hm?"

Max had almost forgotten why he may have been selected. This gentleman was showing him respect and courtesy he had never known, telling him that he shouldn't doubt himself. He now realized why he was separated from the others who've come to support him. If he slept in the same chambers as his friends, how could be emotionally prepare for spending the rest of his life potentially with a significant and important other?

Gripping his hands into fists, he ignored the stinging in his back and understood what the older man said.

_Now isn't the time to doubt. Now's the time to ensure I can at least make through this, and see what kind of person the Queen is...and if its worth leaving my family in Fairy Tail for her._

As if noticing his line of thoughts, Bashiff nodded and left the hall, speaking aloud to those in the hall with a sudden exclamation that made Max wince.

"Why are you so FAT?! No, don't force yourself through the door! And you, stop doing that to the wall! Hey, don't run in the halls! What is wrong with all of you?!"

Sighing, Max set his bag down and laid across the bed, staring up at the chandelier as he felt the airship begin to ascend and then take off.

"Glad to see they haven't lost their spirit," Max spoke to himself, raising a hand up towards the glittering prisms that reflected light and danced over his head. Gripping his hand as if he was holding something precious, the man closed his eyes and let it fall over his head, slowly drifting off to sleep.

* * *

The take-off from Fiore's southernmost city - Clover Town - was a deceptively smooth one despite how large and visually unwieldy the _Divine Caravan_ seemed to be. Maneuvering up into the sky, they accelerated off and moved in a beeline over the gulf and straight across the nation of Minstrel. They said it'd likely take two days to reach the destination of the capital, and maybe three if weather wasn't favorable.

Due to the poor reputation of Minstrel's lawlessness, they kept a higher elevation to avoid being targeted by the territories that was permissive in attacking those who were within range. Thankfully nothing seemed to have come of it, so the guild enjoyed the even more lavish accommodations within the aerial luxury liner.

Bashiff seemed to have been the man in charge of the ship, despite the introductions being made of Kaseem Aladrah. It was explained by the chief that he was in charge of guiding them there, and seemed to know the proper routes across Desierto that didn't possess as much problems as the others did. Accordingly, even by sky, Desierto had harsh weather conditions ranging from sandstorms, fire spouts, and electrical waves bursting from the earth caused by unusual magnetic backlash of mineral deposits.

Eating lavish food, Max was thankful to re-integrate with his friends in Team Wendy at the dining hall. Robyn was busy gorging himself on the food-stuffs, proving that his appetite matched that of other known Slayers; even Wendy herself - despite restraining herself - couldn't help but eat a lot more than she remembered almost a year ago. Perhaps her body was growing and she didn't know about it?

"You look better," Eris noted from across the table, her pink-head tilting as Max scooped up rich meats and vegetables by silverware provided to him. He looked her way and she smiled at him. "I see you found your resolve."

"Wasn't on my own. Bashiff was just being really nice, like the grandfather I never had," Max admitted with a smile, turning to see the elderly man make the rounds of inspecting the conditions of the dining hall.

"He seems like a good man given a big responsibility," Charle noted aloud, her feet resting on several cushions to keep herself propped up at the table's level. "I feel bad that some of Fairy Tail can be a bit...rowdy."

"Doranbolt, stop that-!"

"I must taste the table!"

"NOOOOOO!" Bashiff exclaimed in a horrified bellow as before Max even realized, Doranbolt had an odd bulging-eyed expression as he chomped down on the table next to his plate, chomping it on it like some bizarre-nutcracker would. The older man had to pry him off with the help of Wendy before the scarred man finally regained his composure and fervently apologized, much to Max's chagrin.

"Sorry, I don't know what came over me," The teleporter spoke with his head hanging down.

Robyn let out a massive belch that echoed the entire dining hall, bringing all eyes to him. The long-haired boy just looked around, taking a napkin and daintily wiping his lips, letting out a more quite burp, before saying aloud, "Excuse me."

"Dragon lungs aren't to be underestimated, I see," Wendy fathomed with a sheepish expression overcoming her visage. "As well as stomachs."

"This is nice," Max noted aloud.

"What is?" Bobbie inquired, suddenly beside the Sand Mage without him realizing it.

Fighting back the urge to question his own awareness of things, the bowl-cut haired man scratched his cheek, smiling with sincerity, "Being here, with you guys before everything gets heavy. I just got a feeling things are going to be weird once this stuff starts happening, you know?"

"Hmmm," Bobbie Blondes hummed, slurping up some noodles while everyone else seemed to stay silent in agreement.

Pursing his lips, Max turned on his seat and looked at the sighing Bashiff, and questioned from where he sat to the older man, "Hey, we only have another day before we reach the capital, right?"

"An estimation, according to our guide," Bashiff replied, recomposing himself in a dignified straight posture. "Weather can be especially fickle in Desierto. Apart from the capital, nothing is quite certain. That and there's always other dangers, such as wildlife and-"

The whole world seemed to tilt to a ninety degree angle to the right. Dishes, tables, and surprisingly everything apart from the dining patrons remained in place despite the laws of gravity at play. It dawned on some that some form of enchantment kept the inside of the airship stable and centered, even when jarred. However, the movement was so abrupt it wasn't completely cancelled, and indicated something akin to an alarm.

Then came a stream of fire that painted the glass-observatory of the dining hall's three stories, barely a few dozen meters from where they were coasting moments ago.

"W-What was that?!" Charle cried out with alarm.

"Bandits," Bashiff answered, with certainty as much as he was finishing his own earlier statement. "To think they would be so bold as to attack her grace's escort? How could they have known about our movements if not for-?"

"Should we assist?" Doranbolt asked, standing upright from the table.

"No! You are guests, not combatants!" The older man refused outright, placing his hands on the teleporter's shoulders with a firm grip behind his wrinkled fingers. "Please, remain calm. Our guide will protect us."

"But he's just one guy!" Max protested, standing upright with a look of seriousness locking onto Bashiff's. "If bandits are attacking, then actual non-combatants on board could be in danger. The crew, and some of our friends as well. Let us help!"

The old man looked stunned. Even as the airship rocked back the opposite end, dipping and pulling up as more streams of fire sought purchase against the elegantly designed craft, he felt a sudden charge in the air. He looked over and saw more and more mages stood up, eyes looking at each other with a glint of determination across their eyes. They all looked towards him, and he couldn't help but let out a sigh and shake his head.

"May she forgive me for this," He muttered, pulling out a glass orb - A Communication Lacrima, no doubt - and spoke into it as it showed the face of the pilot. "Lower our altitude."

"But sir, the guide said that-"

"Our guests...no...Fairy Tail said it wishes to fend off our attackers on no urge of our own. Lower to an altitude that'd allow us to dock," He impassioned, bringing a smile on Max and the rest's faces.

"Understood, Chief Bashiff. I see a dune up ahead and it seems these bandits are mobile. We should meet them shortly after touchdown."

* * *

The majestic golden dragon angled its wings to deliver its large statuesque frame to a particularly square-shaped dune in the distance. Landing with ease, a billowing dust cloud was released from the lander-propulsors kicking up the grains and swathing it in a thick silhouette of its draconic shape. It was plainly visible by way of greyish-yellow spotted lizards that swayed sinuously through the sand as their legs kicked up the sand while barely sinking into its pliant surface.

Numbering nearly a dozen, the creatures were easily as large as a house - or a moderately sized cafeteria back in Magnolia - while hoisting eight to ten individuals on their backs on cramped saddles with a number of large bags strapped to their sides. Hissing out flame from their toothless mouths, eyes darting in opposite directions as they instinctively kept track of their environment.

At the head of them was a man with a wild mane that sprouted from a ponytail while the rest of his skull was shaved bare, replaced by black claw tattoo that wrapped around his broad jawline. His face was painted as if it was a skeleton, with the rest of his body enamored bare-skinned apart from some ragged cloth intertwined with leather-straps adorned over his pelvic region, shins and arms, leaving him mostly without any real defense. It didn't matter to him, as his massive body seemed to dwarf the others as he took up the whole saddle himself while the others of normal bodily disposition of varying shapes had cloaks, armor of a light maneuverable kind.

"Gehehehe, they're landing? Looks like they don't want to crash and burn; must have valuable cargo aboard along with one of them candidates," The leader of the bandits proclaimed aloud, grinning so that the faux-painted teeth spread in conjunction with his hideous black ones within his mouth. Turning to look over his shoulder, he pulled on the reins of his mount, raising what looked like a chainsaw sword in hand as he bellowed out to his men. "Ransack the ship! Leave the candidate alive so we can ransom him; the rest you can do as you please!"

As soon as he said this, the cloud of sand began to swirl around, fiercely till it resembled a twister than a simple veil of visual obstruction. Rising up like a serpent, the head of the spiraling vortex of grain then thrust towards them like a massive spear, aiming to bowl through all of them in a single bound.

Without provocation, the Sand Salamanders' necks swelled up and then vomited out geysers of fire, all crashing against the sand wave that sought to crush them. The intense billow of heat and grains of earth clashed in an intense flash of light and desert soil, causing the bandit leader to grimace and raise a massive hand to shield his eyes from the shards of glass that was bouncing from the melting heat. The scoundrel then widened his eyes, hearing something swell over his head and he looked up-

-just in time to see a spritely figure jumping in the way of the Sun of Desierto, with a rush of hot air filling her lungs that caused her dainty sized body to expand; right before unleashing a massive pillar of wind straight down towards them.

"You son of a-!" The bandit leader began to swear, pulling back his chainsaw blade and swinging it with a ripping roar, shredding the air wave that sought to pulverize him and separating it into two blasts that kicked up dust around the mounted bandits.

"That's impressive. You must not be common raiders to possess creatures and weapons dangerous enough to counter magic," A voice spoke up ahead of the settling glass fragments. The bandit leader squinted his eyes, seeing a white-coated man strutted forward. Flanked by him was a man with a pompadour and a green tee-shirt, his baggy pants flowing as he smoked on a pipe that puffed up a noticeable white cloud around himself. Encircling the horde of bandits was the entirety of Fairy Tail, with all of them clenching fists, glaring ahead and some of them smiling at the idea of a challenge.

"Who the Hell are all of you?!" The bandit leader yelled out, clearly enraged at the idea of being counterattacked. "Why are a bunch of mages on a ship like that?! You don't look like consort candidates!"

"So you are targeting me," Max stepped forward, the bowl-cut man's hair fluttering in a sudden hot wind as he raised his suit-jacketed arms up with sleeves pulled back to his elbows. "Sorry if you didn't get the memo, but this is my family; you're dealing with the most fearsome Guild of Fiore now!"

"Tch! It doesn't matter how many of you there are!" The man yelled out, veins throbbing across his painted face as he raised his chainsaw blade, revving it up with a pull on the cord as a magical engine howled, causing the teeth of the weapon to light up like flames. "I'll tear your friends apart, and sell you off for a fortune!"

The salamander's mouth opened, preparing to unleash a massive geyser of flame towards the frontline-

"TOO SLOW!" Macao yelled, throwing his hands out and forming a large violet hand that grabbed the Sand Salamander's mouth and slamming it shut.

The lizard's eyes bulged, tearing up and then suddenly swelled up like a balloon before snorting out fire while shooting cartoonishly backwards with the leader still on his back. Crashing into an adjacent dune, the rest of the thugs tried to have their mounts unleash their deadly payloads likewise only to have their mouths suddenly clenched shut by a series of plant-like vices.

"Plant Magic: Green Knots!" Droy declared with a grin, being propped up on Jet's shoulders in a humorous style of piggybacking teamwork from the quick blur of motion they performed in tandem with one another.

Like the others, the salamanders' ballooned up and thrashed against against the sandy terrain with massive blasts. But, unlike their dangerous steeds, the bandits emerged explosively and howled with maddening ambition. Swinging their weapons, they'd be surprised to see numerous fists of smoke and purple flame slamming into their chests, faces and arms, sending a good number of them flying backwards with ease by the two senior Fairy Tail Mages.

"Sorry, but this is a free-for-all," Wakaba intoned with a sly grin watching the bandits look shocked at the power of the mages that dealt with nearly a third of their number so easily. "Don't expect us to take it easy on you or fight fair. You did start this after all."

"Who says about fightin' fair?" A wiry thin thug sneered, diving into the sand as if he was a swimmer. Twisting in and around the ground he'd emerge upward like a serpent, bodily twining himself around the pipe-adorned mage and constricted with bone-crushing force; only to find that he puffed out in a cloud of smoke.

"W-Wha-GAH!"

"That was a Smoke Double," Wakaba spoke aloud as he landed a few more gaseous punches from a distance, a few more appearing beside him taking up cocky stances around him. "You must have an interesting body to do that. You sure you're not a mage?"

On the other side of the field of chaos, Doranbolt was seen casually rushing up to thugs, grasping their arms just as they'd make contact with their weapon and then porting them into one another with a few streaks of motion. Several others were handily chopped and kicked by Wendy, while Eris nimbly dodged and weaved, making a few other bandits strike each other in comical fashion. Bobbie, on the other hand, just watched with a dull expression that was mirrored by Robyn raising a hand to yawn as they observed the rest of Fairy Tail dispatch the sturdy bandits with ease.

"Man, this is a drag," The beautiful boy drawled out, fanning his face with a free hand. "I'm out here in the insufferable heat because of some notion of nobility. Like, I get the satisfaction of comeuppance, but did I need to be out here?"

"Do you want to return to the ship?" Bobbie asked plainly.

"I mean, it's funny watching these fools get their just desserts," Robyn grinned halfway. "Reminds me of the ruffians and scoundrels I recruited not long ago. Though these guys definitely are a big tougher. Must be because of the harsher environment."

As if answering the unsaid question, a loud rippling roar was felt as much as it was heard. Turning his head with Bobbie, the pair would see a crimson spiraling blade carving the sand while propelling from beneath its waves, maneuvering towards the group like a hungry shark of the loose grains beneath. Realizing whom it belonged to, the blue haired boy raised his right heeled boot and slammed it into the ground-

-causing a massive carving fissure of water to tear through the earth and halt the charge of the carving blade's trajectory to the rest of the mages of Fairy Tail.

Expelled from the ground, the giant bandit chief revealed himself with blade in hand, etched with a furious expression as he swung his blade around as it continued to roar in his grip like a wild animal.

"You...dare?!" He snarled out with red veins painting the whites of his eyes.

"Stand back, Bobbie," Robyn told her, taking off his hat and tossing it to her, revealing the finned-ears and scales that sprouted along with his gloves and legs as water already began to swirl from his body. "I want to see how I fair in this climate."

"As you wish," The buxom blonde nodded, deftly leaping away just in time for the fiery teeth of the bandit chieftain slammed into Robyn's front.

A savage grin turned into a wide-eyed snarl, witnessing Robyn's slitted eyes looking up defiantly at him. Holding the fiery blade still, halting its chains endowed with flame in a revolving current of water as formed by his partial use of _Armor of the Maelstrom, _he pushed it back upwards with surprising strength for his size.

"This is a neat toy," Robyn commented with a sharp-toothy smirk, his watery claws digging into its framework. "But it's not nearly strong enough to deal with me!"

Yanking it forward, he slammed a foot straight into his chest, causing the giant man to lurch as a torrent of water spun into his chest and sent him flying off his feet. His enormous stature took some of the barely standing bandits off guard, crashing into them and slamming into the dune face they were docked in adjacency to the chaos. As the dust settled, Robyn sighed, disengaging his dragon slayer magic and returned to his normal human appearance.

"Over already?" Robyn shook his head with a smirk. "I guess I underestimate my strength sometimes."

Doranbolt eyed the androgynous man warily, seeing the giant chieftain struggle to get back to his feet, coughing up blood as he did so.

"No sissy...is going to beat me...in a single blow," The giant bandit growled, veins throbbing all over his body.

"You can barely stand," The 2nd Generation Dragon Slayer noted aloud, calling out to him from the distance while gesturing to the rest of his crew bloodied and bruised in the ground. "Your men are beaten, and so are you. Might as well give up."

"I still got..._this!_"

The bandit chieftain brandished a sudden an elaborate curved dagger, fitting into his hand the size of a scimitar to anyone else. It hummed with an ominous energy, and radiated magical power all its own. Chuckling through the heaves of effort of his chest, he began to call out an incantation, "Oh Lord of Sacrilege, Defile me so they taste humilia-"

In an instant, a blur of instantaneous movement was seen as Doranbolt slammed a fist into the man's jugular. Choking out with bulging eyes, the teleporter grabbed his head with both hands and slammed both knees into his nostrils, breaking the nose and flipped up over him and threw him into the ground with prejudice. In a loud crashing impact, the man loosened his grasp on the blade and lied limp in a heap while the scarred man sighed with relief.

"D-D-Doranbolt!" Robyn cried out, the man blinking and turning to look at Robyn's puffed up face. "W-What the Hell, man?!"

"He was about to use something dangerous," Doranbolt answered matter-of-fact, pointing to his unconscious form. "So, I stopped him."

"But that would've been cool to see!"

"...and risk endangering everyone else?"

"GRAH!" Robyn stomped, Bobbie appearing by his side and placing the hat on his head as he squat-walked back to the ship as he averted his gaze to Doranbolt, grumbling under his breath the whole time.

"Did...did I do something wrong?" Doranbolt inquired, looking over to Macao, Wakaba and Wendy as they walked up to him with Max and the others in tow.

"No, you were right. Nice quick thinking to hit his vital spots before dropping him," Macao complimented with a smile, patting Doranbolt on the shoulder. "Come on. Since there's no authorities out here we'll just leave them as is and they can reflect on their mistakes. No use executing them here."

"I suppose," Doranbolt turned, his eyes looking down at the man's side where the dagger was. "Wait a minute...it was just here."

"What was?" Wendy inquired as she reached the man's side.

"That strange weapon that had its own magical energy. It's gone!"

"Maybe it's in the sand somewhere-"

A sudden eruption of blood filled the air. Everyone's eyes widened as their return halted at the sudden movement that the sand itself rose up and cut through each of the fallen bandits, butchering them into piles of meat. Even the giant didn't escape, leaving everyone to see Kaseem standing at the top of the dune where the airship was parked, pulling a blade out of the loose earth and revealing an elegantly rune-engraved scimitar in hand; in the other hand, was the smaller dagger-like curved sword in his grip.

"Return to the Divine Caravan at once," He ordered, his eyes glaring down at the rest of Fairy Tail as he sheathed his sword on his hip while pocketing the other weapon in his cloak. "We will tolerate no more delays because of personal whims."

Max, Wendy and Doranbolt now knew why Bashiff said their guide would protect them. The fact he could land such brutal attacks from a distance showed that he was likely waiting for the bandits to get closer. What was disturbing was the fact that he confiscated the suspicious weapon, and then executed the unconscious men without hesitation; criminals or not, it painted him in a light that didn't sit well with the rest of Fairy Tail.

With reluctance, they boarded the _Divine Caravan_, and took back into the sky towards their course.

* * *

Wendy didn't know what to make of their escort.

On the one hand, Bashiff had been nothing but a great host - if not an exhausted one - while showing them kindness and patience all throughout their short time spent together. However, unlike him was their guide, Kaseem who seemed harsh and unwilling to show even a moderate sense of courtesy. He had remained silent and distant throughout their trek, not interacting with any of them throughout their skyward journey.

As she processed her thoughts, she was eventually joined at the top of the dining room observatory window by Max.

"Hey Wendy," Max greeted her with a small smile, nodding to her at the rising Sun horizon in view of the Airship. "You're up early."

"I guess I couldn't sleep much," The Sky Dragon Slayer admitted with a sigh. "But, you're up early too."

"Still a bit shook up from yesterday I suppose," Max confessed, scratching his cheek as he stood up next to her. "That and the anxiety of what's to come."

"You'll do great, Max," Wendy assured him.

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because, just hearing your words gave us all so much confidence and stirred us up into action," She placed a hand on his shoulder, her amber eyes twinkling up at his surprised gaze. "You have the makings of a great leader. You'll do fantastic at whatever you want to do."

The man smiled, placing a hand on Wendy's head and rubbing it affectionately, much to her giggling chagrin.

"Thanks," He said, looking towards the horizon with his spirit renewed. "I know I got this. I'm just scared, is all."

"We're all here for ya!"

"I know," Max nodded, gazing at the sparking Sun in the distance.

Then, the Sun glimmered, and out from the sandy sea came something fantastic.

"Whoa, is that-"

"-the Capital?!"

The two finished after one another, seeing the enormous city unfold in scope before their approach. An enormous crystal-shaped dome rested over a series of square-blocks, all gleaming of the color of the Sun, while its surrounding smaller structures all had a similar tangent of yellowish-bricks and crimson flags brandishing the standard of the nation of a two-winged dragon soaring up high into the sky on a red backdrop. With hangars holding similar airships encircled around the outer perimeter, one could see a river that rose up out of the sandy sea that ran within a third of the outer area of the capital before diving back into the loose grained soil. A white-blue fort lied across from a circular stadium, while pockets of villages rested along solid roads that managed to be made beyond the walls that encircled the whole of the capital that seemed to be just as substantial if not larger than Crocus itself.

"Amazing view, isn't it?" Bashiff said, walking up to the two in tow with the rest of the guild, all rushing to get a good look as they ooh'd and awe'd at the spectacular site just within reach. "Welcome to our pride and glory: Paradisio."

* * *

**A/N**:

**LastationLover5000: **_This was one heck of a chapter to work on, everyone! By far, this is our longest chapter yet, capping out somewhere around 15k, and I'm glad to see our new arc — the Queen of the Dunes arc — is seeing its first chapter set off with such a splashy beginning! My section was sadly the smaller, but I tried my best to make it as good as I could; Max is a character my co-author and I are both coming to enjoy, so I wanted to expand on the man a little, give him some backstory without conflicting with the very little bit we know. Macao is another person I'm trying to make reliable; notice both he and Wakaba got to shine in different sections? My co-author's section got nice lore expansion, our first real look at Desierto, from its culture to its criminals, and even their technology. And best of all, we ended it making it to the Capital! I cannot stress how excited we both are for this new arc, and we hope you all will be here to enjoy it!_

**Demod20: **_Oh man, this chapter is a *doozy*. Not only did I write the largest portion yet, but this is the largest chapter yet. Lots of character development, changes in appearance, and interactions made while world building is a'going. Even some classifiers for bandits on how they operate differently than criminals within Fiore, with their own special skills and weapons, with even fire breathing lizards. I enjoyed characterizing every bit. I thank my partner for his first bit of helping establish the beginning of preparation for the trip and I had a blast writing the twists, turns and comedic to dramatic moments. I'll look forward to the next chapter, and establishing Paradisio, the Capital of Desierto! ^^_


	16. The Kingdom of Desierto

**Chapter 16 - The Kingdom of Desierto  
Written by Demod20**

* * *

The city was gorgeous.

There was no denying the visual appeal of a nation's crown jewel as old and longstanding as this.

The palace dominated the capital as its centerpoint, elevated off the ground by a naturally formed rock formation that resembled the base of a mountain that didn't reach any higher than a hundred meters high, with all roads paved in immaculate golden bricks leading up to the four gates that stood in cardinal directions, with each entrance showing various shaped specter images that resembled spirits or something human yet not quite normal; also, of course, carved in polished gold.

Leading down from the north looked to be a compact amount of housing, where all citizens were placed in a cobbled-together structures that looked to have been built upwards over time, leaving them to be immense in size comparable to that of the shopping center Fairy Tail saw not long ago but completely enamored by various kinds of golden trim artwork and idols of various sorts on pedestals outside of the windows or in front of the doors.

To the west lied a large swathe of the commerce district, lining a huge array of tents, brick and golden covered structures that made up its appearance of a true open market for passer-biers and citizens alike to look at their wares; this was where the majority of the traffic seemed to be at this time with a sea of people moving to and fro from each other.

At the east entrance to the palace was a line of more exquisite housing that didn't look quite clustered, separate and ordained with purpose from each other. This led to the viridescent river that sprouted from the earth like a geyser that flowed coolly across the surface with its clear surface showing a nearly imperceptible depth before diving back into the earth from whence it came not but a kilometer later down the line. A bridge formed across the river led to a fort of familiar colors, of white and teal markings and flags that was certainly Council authority present.

And lastly, to the direction they were headed, was a large rectangular hub that was built into the wall south of the palace where on the other side lied statues, a temple of some kind right next to a few buildings of trade that led up towards the central point of the capital.

Paradisio was indeed as it name alluded: a paradise!

As Wendy was awestruck with the rest of the guild, their airship was lowered into opening roof of the square-like structure where it housed a number of aerial vehicles similar but different in design from theirs. Landing to the rightmost opening, the gentle rocking of their footing indicated that it touched base. From this point on, it was a hustle out of the massive vehicle by Bashiff, with their escort stoically standing with the chief as they corralled the group like rowdy cats. When everyone finally disembarked, their luggage was handled by the airship's staff, saying that their housing will be handled. The only one that gave trouble was Bobbie who had to be ordered by Robyn to part ways with the large rope-bound case full of Robyn's affects.

Then, a hasty farewell was given by Max as Bashiff and Kaseem escorted the man through the glamorous road straight to the palace, leaving behind a slew of attractive aides to take their place.

"Blessings be upon you," Three women said in unison, each one curvaceous and showing off as much skin as Bobbie was in outfits reminiscent of hers, though decorated in gold and black with violet veils wrapped around their lower faces.

"Welcome to Paradisio!" The center one, a sparkling blonde with green eyes spoke with deep tan skin that spoke of her being a native of this country; though her accent was impeccably similar to how those of the west spoke, which made some of the Fairy Tail mages blink with surprise. Not noticing this - or choosing to ignore - she raised an index finger as she began to debrief them.

"My name is Kelass, and I'm the one who will help guide you through Paradisio. Along with me is Marra," She pointed to her right, a deep tanned girl with long luscious black locks that draped down her shoulders and along her bare back. "And Para, my two assistants," she pointed to her left, a shorter of the three with brown hair and hazelnut eyes that had her brunette tresses tied into a three banded ponytail that stretched down to the top of her well formed rump. Swinging her hands forward to them as her assistants bowed their heads respectfully. "As guests in affiliation with the candidate, we will do our best to accommodate your interests wherever they lie within our fair city. It is recommended we stay with you at all times, as we get lots of tourism during this time of year and this can attract the occasional undesirable, so please keep your things on your person less you might lose it."

"_Must...not...stare,_" Macao thought to himself as he grinned a bit too happily at being greeted by the exotic beauties before his gaze.

Thankfully, a kick to his shin by his son brought his head back down from cloud nine. With a wince, he cleared his throat, raising a hand up to wave towards them since he knew he couldn't hand shake people of this culture, "Nice to meet you three lovely ladies. My name is Macao Conbolt, and I'm the Guild Master of Fairy Tail. As such as I hold responsibility over this assembly, so if you ever feel like you have a problem come talk to me."

"You misunderstand, Master Conbolt," Kelass shook her head, smiling brightly as she wiggled her finger dismissively towards him. "We are responsible for you. So don't feel wholly obligated for such a burden, for while you are here in Paradisio, we will make sure your well-being and happiness is our top priority."

"Will we be able to see Max?" Wendy asked, her voice piping up from the line-up first of the mages.

"Bashiff was charged in taking care of the him," The tanned blonde responded casually, shaking her head as she raised her hands up with a shrug. "That's up for him to decide. You will be able to partake in spectating the trials all candidates undergo, but it is up to the judgement of the caretakers of the potential prince consorts who is allowed to see them."

"Can we go anywhere?" Robyn questioned next, his hands still tucked behind his pointed-hat adorned head.

"The palace is currently accepting no visitors, and only those with authorization may cross Paradise River for that is a zone controlled by the Magic Council," Kelass answered smoothly, her hands placed on her bare hips, the cloth covering her womanly assets jingling with beaded jewelry as she swayed a bit in place. "But don't be afraid to approach the Rune Knights if you can't find a guard in arm's reach. They are here to help with security during this magnanimous event and ensure all goes smoothly when the eventual consort is chosen and accepted by our Queen."

Doranbolt couldn't help but take a sharp inhale through his nose, feeling Charle, Robyn, Wendy and Bobbie's eyes suddenly dart towards him. With eventually more and more people staring his way, he changed the subject sharply as he raised his hand with a boisterous question, "Is it safe for us to shop here?!"

"Why of course," The beautiful blonde woman nodded, gesturing over her right shoulder to the road that curved to the louder part of the capital. "Paradisio is not only a crown jewel for it being the capital, but it also is the center of commerce for our whole nation. This rare time in the age is when all kinds of traders are welcome to set up booths, shops, and tents to pass along their wares and goods that range from all over Ishgar. Even if your money isn't completely compatible, trade is quite flexible here, and we have a fair system in place to find the best equivalent for market value."

"Where will we be staying?" Wakaba inquired next, his eyes slanting towards Macao as he found himself rosy cheeked and staring longingly at Kelass despite Romeo's visual signs of protest.

"There is temporary housing available for you in the eastern district," Kelass explained, pointing to her left to the curve of the road that seemed to be the quieter area of the bustling capital. "It isn't quite ready, as your things will be properly arranged and your rooms given the final touches. We suggest you take a tour with us across the capital in the meantime, so please feel free to let us know where you'd like to go first."

After receiving another sharp kick to the shin, Macao recomposed himself with a wincing cough as he straightened his posture. Looking to Wakaba, he let out a smile and nodded towards the three women, "Well, it seems they want us to appreciate their culture while we're here. Might as well do that, if our boy Max does end up staying here."

"Anything can happen, that's for sure," The smoke mage replied with a smile. Looking to the woman ahead, he nodded to her with a bob of his pompadour head. "Can ya take us to the market? That sounds like a place a lot of us can find souvenirs and such there."

"Of course!" The blonde replied with a clap of her hands. "I'll show the way. Everyone just stay close as I guide ahead!"

"Ya heard the nice lady," Macao barked over his shoulder at the other mages. "Follow her nice bod-erImean-follow her lead!"

"...you're embarrassing me dad..." Romeo groaned under his breath while Kinana just sheepishly giggled beside him.

Ushering them ahead, they passed by structures that all had official meaning that looked to be businesses that held some importance outside of mercantilism. As Kelass took the lead, the raven haired woman took the opportunity to explain the purpose of the buildings and landmarks they were coming across.

"If you look to the left," Marra spoke aloud, her voice smooth like silk and of a deeper timbre that came across as almost seductive innately. Waving her hand as the mages looked on, they'd see a large pillared structure of gold with white marble designed around it, with an angelic statue with draconic wings spread out from the back with a fountain pouring from the mouth that filled a pool glimmering with coins in front of the structure. "This is the temple dedicated to the Queen. Outsiders are welcome to place offerings within her grace's pool of reverence, while citizens enter that sacred place to give thanks and tithes for giving us security and prosperity."

"You worship your queen?" Alzack inquired, the long-haired gun-mage blinking inquisitively at Marra being among the closest in proximity of the group to her. "No disrespect, but that seems a bit much, even for a ruler."

"Foreigners cannot appreciate what our majesty has done for us. I'd watch what you say while here, guest or not, or I'll make you regret saying such things," Marra replied icily, the air around her suddenly becoming threatening despite her comely appearance.

"I'm sorry if I'm speaking my mind, but I'm not a boot-licking citizen here, so I'll say what I want-!"

"I apologize if it seems bizarre to an outsider," Kelass interceded, while Marra just stared at him like he was stupid; the gun-mage glared back even as the blonde tried her best to speak over their stare-down. "Unlike other royals of different lands, our custom have always to revere her for making a paradise out of a wasteland. Before we had our queen, there was naught but roving tribes that often attacked one another as we were assaulted by the environment, foreigners and the wildlife. For that we give great reverence, and if that is to be worship, then that is how we thank her for her compassion and protection."

"No one person should be treated as infallible," The dark-haired man replied, staring back aggressively at the blonde with Bisca herself seeming to hold an arm and look away. "From where I live, far away to the west, people who gain that kind of clout are nothing but arrogant and conceited. All people of authority should be held accountable, less it breeds discontent from the masses or worse, oppression from a tyranny!"

Robyn's eyes glinted, turning from his casual strut to look curiously at the man with a hint of a smile on his face at hearing that. Even Eris and Bobbie looked over with amazement, having never heard the man be outspoken, sharing this mindset with Wendy and the others of the guild.

It only occurred to them that no one really knew where Bisca or Alzack hailed from, only that it was across the sea to the west. What could have transpired there that worshiping a living being brought out such vitriol from one that the other didn't even chastise the outburst?

"Alzack," Macao spoke suddenly with an audible authority, bringing the gunslinger to look his way and flinch at the glare sent in his direction. "That's enough."

Sighing, the man bowed his head and apologized, "I'm sorry for my rude conduct. It's no excuse to behave that way when I know not your customs."

"Apology accepted," Marra coolly replied, her countenance no longer frigid and welcoming once again.

"Great! Now let's move on before the pious notice your heretical speech!"

Alzack grimaced at the passive aggressive tone Kelass had as she ushered them forward, past the temple and across what looked like several different kinds of establishments. Restaurants that had wafting aromas of delicious baked goods and meats no one had smelled before, trade stores filled with a variety of things plucked from the vast sand filled wilderness of Desierto. As they turned the corner towards the street coming into the western district, they spotted a slew of people all congregating around the upcoming bazaar they were approaching.

"That looks a bit densely packed," Warren noted with a grimace on his face.

"Will I even fit through?" Reedus inquired worriedly, crossing his hands over his rotund front body.

"Don't worry," Para syrupy voice cut in, the brunette pony-tailed woman looking over her shoulder and wiggling her finger dismissively. "I got this."

Kalass shook her head while Marra simply smiled, the two seeming to be aware what she was up to.

As they got closer to the head of the crowd, the people heard a sudden shrill whistle that cut like a knife through the butter of their proverbial dialogue. People adorned in robes, cloaks of various kinds of wealth and status, with a mixture of people clearly from not of this nation looking at the sudden source of the sound. They saw Para lower her fingers from her mouth, and then she inhaled deeply and let out a boisterous yell.

"HEY YOU! WE'RE ESCORTING GUESTS OF THE QUEEN! GIVE US SOME ROOM!"

All at once, a comical slide of people allowed a comfortable entry into the marketplace, with some even pushing themselves flat against one another over tents and building faces.

"If the Queen wills it, it'll be done!" They all spoke back in unison, eyes glimmering with hearts and stars as not a hint of resentment or annoyance at being ordered to maneuver so inconveniently for them.

"Thank you very much!" Para cheered out, throwing her hips to the side suggestively while cutely flashing her eyelashes at the compliant crowd.

Wendy felt her face go slack at the audacity of these aides to act in such a way. Were people here that devoted to their ruler that they'd prostrate themselves in any manner? Casting a wary glance at Alzack and Robyn, the two seemed to have a similar expression of disgust, though bit their tongues knowing it'd only stir up trouble for those devoted so absolutely to the aforementioned ruler.

"This feels...odd," Charle noted, walking near Wendy as she observed the populace fawning and praising the queen even though it was just subordinates uttering her name.

"Its like a stark contrast to how people behave in Crocus," Doranbolt noted aloud, observing the people with an inherent glow that of admiration and devotion he never saw in Fiore. "These people truly worship this queen of theirs."

"Peh!" Robyn snorted. "I never even stepped foot in this city. We just took what they had on them at the height of some stupid feast they were having. Gluttonous pigs really living it up-"

Before he could continue, Eris clamped her hands over the young Slayer's mouth, causing him to muffle out with protest. The elf meanwhile just smiled sheepishly at the curiously staring royal assistants, who had overheard his words and were instantly suspicious.

"Ah! You'd have to excuse our dear blue bird," Eris sheepishly explained, Robyn's face sporting angry veins while hands attempted to pry her dainty palms from his cherub mouth. "What he meant to say was that he remembered some birthday celebration where he made off with forty whole cakes; it was quite a lot and it was almost akin to a grand heist. We did give recompense for it, of course..."

Team Wendy exchanged a handful of blinks at the fanciful lie that Eris wove. As they blinked around at each other, the aides looked to each other and then shrugged before moving ahead without really prying further.

Releasing his mouth, the pink-haired maternal figure cuffed Robyn on the back of his head, causing his eyes to bulge out and tear up as he rubbed a sore spot on his teal colored scalp. As she began to rebuke him, they found themselves mingling with a less crammed part of the market, with sellers that definitely seemed to be a mixture of various cultures that had come for the same reason they did.

"Come get your exotic Lacrima and materials, made from Iceberg Hersteller!" A boisterous man with a pale beard and a snow-man like appearance, a distinct chill surrounding his igloo shop that was framed by a few ice-clad statues that was reminiscent of metal armor but was clearly crystalline in appearance. "We have a great price, no one will ever see outside of today! Get it now while the getting's good!"

"Ooooh, those look so pretty!" Wendy pointed out with a dazzled smile.

"How can they keep that place so cold?" Charle asked, shivering as she felt a wafting mist give her a sensation of the arctic over her fur. "Brrrr!"

"Hmmm, interesting," Robyn mulled out, his eyes briefly glancing over at the array of unique ice items, his mind working out their worth through a moment's glance before moving on with his brain cataloging the things he'd like to come back for.

"Here now, weapons from the Far East! You'll never find a collection more fine than mine!" A man of heavily accented tongue spoke, his slanted eyes and short stature framed by exotic flowing robes as he shakily gestures to glass-cased weapons in front of a wooden shop stall that was set up. Behind him within the shade of his small shop was rows upon rows of weapons, each one as odd and unique from the rest. This drew the attention of Bobbie and Doranbolt, each of them taking quick steps over to look at the vast collections that were on display.

"Now that's something I could use," The two said at once. Noticing what the other said, they turned their heads to look at one another with surprise; before Doranbolt abruptly looked away with red on his cheeks while Bobbie simply smiled.

"I-I'll like to look at those," Doranbolt jabbed forward over the older shopkeep's head, keeping his head turned away from the smirking blonde.

"Ah, yes-yes-yes," He bowed his head repeatedly, turning around and scurrying around to grasp what looked like a pair of hooked blades with short knife-long handles attached to each other by an ebony chain. Holding them up in his shaky hands, he grinned and waddled back over to Doranbolt, handing them over for him to check them with curiosity. "T-This is called...K-Kusarigama, hm, yes-yes. They require a great deal of f-f-finesse, hm, yes-yes."

"Not an issue," Doranbolt, feeling that weapons such as these could be useful with skills that he possessed. "How much?"

"_700 Dragots_," The man replied straightforwardly.

"What's the exchange rate to Fiore Jewels?"

"Dragots are worth more than that trade money of yours," The Easterner shopkeep spoke clearly, not holding the eccentricity of his voice any longer, his squinting eyes opening to look up at the teleporter. "Adjusting your currency inflation, along with the cost of using international money...hmmm...75,000 Jewels."

"Not an unfair trade," Doranbolt surmised, withdrawing some currency from his pocket and handing it out to the man. With the weapon placed in a bag, Doranbolt looked to Bobbie who seemed to be holding what looked like nunchakus, expectantly thrusting them into his hand.

"What?"

"Pay for me," Bobbie spoke bluntly.

"And why should I?" The scarred man frowned at that.

"Cause."

"Cause WHY?!" He yelled aloud angrily.

"My money was in Robyn's case."

"WHY DID YOU LEAVE IT THERE?!" Doranbolt yelled with angry veins sported across his head.

"I didn't expect them to carry it off," Bobbie spoke dryly with a shrug.

Grimacing, Doranbolt began to fish for money as other mages looked around at various other booths and tents set up along the marketplace.

"Hmmm, these paints are of great quality," Reedus intoned as he leaned over an art seller's front desk, stroking his chin as the shopkeep eagerly showed him variety of oils and brushes to go in compliment. "Perhaps...hmmm...what color combinations could I go with?"

Apart from him, Alzack caught a glance at a rare Gun Seller that looked to have hailed from Fiore, likely having made a much more arduous journey to get here. Both Bisca and him approached the gentleman, exchanging pleasantries while the two bonded over their mutual love of the craft of firearms. Some even had Lacrima cartridges that he knew he needed to stock up on, and new ones that he hadn't seen before.

Catercorner to the pair was Jet and Droy, the pair passing by what looked like a line of meat freshly cooked from the oven that was puffing out smoke from the compact shop. It looked gourmet quality, and was piled on a massive platter that stretched the whole front counter, wafting its scent over the shoppers; with strangely a number of them resting with hands on rounded tummies in an awry pile next to it.

Their mouths drooled, the pair looking at each other before rushing over and a beefy hand reached out to halt them.

"You may eat, if you're willing to eat it all," A large man with a small head spoke, his cueball skull having imposing eyes despite how disproportionately enormous he was, with a dark red apron wrapped over his chest that read 'Don't Touch the Chef'. "I serve by the platter. If you eat this all, then you may pay a fraction for not wasting my well cooked meat."

"You're on!" The two spoke, their hands grabbing forks and diving voraciously into the well-cooked meat, tears rolling down their faces as the taste soaked into their tongues.

As the mages of Fairy Tail continued to find new ways to be entertained or find unique things that catered to their own personal fancy, Macao smiled ruefully at his longtime friend. Romeo was hugging a new book on fire magic titled "The Wayard Fire Prince," while Kinana held a dress in her arms while humming an unknown tune as she skipped in step.

"The Guild needed this more than I thought," Macao wistfully sighed aloud.

"It's only natural. Even with our victory and late new year's party, the absence of the others must have been weighing on their minds while they stayed in the Guild Hall," Wakaba replied with a sage nod, looking over at Wendy and Charle bounce from one shop to the other, while Robyn casually strutted past by with Eris constantly nagging him any time his hands got too itchy to nab something when someone wasn't looking. "Getting out is nice. I don't recall the last time our guild even had a vacation."

"We should do this again!" Romeo spoke, his face beaming with joy.

"Mhm! I love coming out of Fiore and seeing new places like this!" Kinana agreed with Macao's son.

"Well, we didn't have to pay for travel this time, so just mind on how much you spend," The Guild Master tried to say responsibly, his hands raising in a chiding manner. "But, who knows? If things go well, we may be able to visit more often than you think."

"I wonder how Max is doing?" Wakaba noted immediately, his pompadour head turning to look at the spectacular palace that stood above the marketplace in the not-too-far distance. "Guy's gotta be feeling out of his depth here. Hope he'll settle down once he knows what he's in for."

"He'll do good," Macao grinned confidently up at the palace, hands on his hips as he spoke assuredly. "Whatever happens, the man's proven to have the spirit of a true Fairy Tail Mage. He won't half-ass anything when the chips are down; not sure if his competition will even know what hits him."

* * *

Wendy couldn't help but be amazed by the beauty of Paradisio. From the paved golden roads and buildings, to the rich culture of reverence and historical meaning, to even love of their queen radiating through all citizens of this harsh land brought a certain sense of awe to the young Dragon Slayer. But here in the marketplace, she saw so much variety and diverse choice of things to spend her time she couldn't decide on what to do first.

From a variety of exotic weapons, clothes and armor to gourmet food from both far and ear, even entertainment was being provided from those who've come to this place from the horizon just to show off their skills and talents to the local masses. She saw those who performed interesting magical techniques, others who set up an actual sumo ring that used their bodies to wrestle each other off, and even sword fencing.

But what drew her eyes was a stage, an actual theater that took up a large swathe of space that only a quarter of the way through the market told her just how immense the proportion of the bazaar of Paradisio was. It was designed with familiar red velvet embroidered cloth from the west, with flowers that she remembered seeing from Crocus enamored in between ribbons, giving it a very welcome and colorful appearance. A crowd smooshed themselves forward and were attentive to the yet-to-be-drawn curtains as the aides brought them through the marketplace diligently.

Stopping to see the elevated platform, Wendy huffed with frustration at her lack of height. Jumping up and trying to pry her way in, she fell back onto her buttocks with a whimper.

Charle placed a comforting paw on her shoulder and smiled, gesturing to the space above them. Grinning brightly, she nodded, giving silent consent as Charle activated Aera - her white feathered wings manifesting from her back - and picked up Wendy, raising her up just in time for the curtains to be drawn back.

From the open curtain came a v-cut dressed woman that instantly drew applause from the crowd. Adorned in a purple dress with a floral design along the hem of her exposed left leg, raised up by black heels, a curvaceous woman with soft lilac hair and fair skin stepped forth. With opera gloves enamored across her arms up to fingerless palms, she grasped the top of the skirt and gave a curtsy, allowing many to ogle her generous cleavage as she let out an exaggerated sigh.

"Thank you for coming to - or those who've been here since the beginning, staying - for our encore performance," The woman spoke, smiling as she spotted the floating Wendy with a brief glint in her eyes. She didn't seem at all surprised that she was hovering there, almost as if recognizing her. Grinning, she raised her voice as she produced a tambourine in hand, clapping it with a melodic jingle in the air. "For those just joining us, my name is Alexandria Quorra. We'll have our guides partake in this special act. I hope you all enjoy!~"

And then, the music was unleashed. Curtains behind the front one dropped revealed stringed instrumentalists, strumming their sounds with professional gusto that brought an air of festive swing. Complemented by the woman's clacking along the stage as she moved and swayed across the platform, clanging her tambourine in time with her expert dancing poise, moving with an excellent grace that had everyone crying out for more.

Familiar figures emerged, making Wendy gape in recognition.

A grey haired man adorned in a white-collared blue dress shirt with white dancer slacks and black satin shoes glided onto the stage along a ring of ice of his own making. As he swung around, Lyon made brief eye contact with Wendy, smiling with elation as he waved and clasped his hands together in a pose she's always saw Gray did.

Then, he unleashed a slew of birds that flew out and over the heads of the audience that spun around the aerial Wendy playfully before flying high into the air and exploding; turning into a hail of snowflakes that rained upon them. Lyon grinned, leaping up and over Alexandria in mid-triple-jingle of her tambourine before grasping her by the waist and spinning her around as if he had done so many times. Her skirt flourished wonderfully around, and then she was sent flying high into the air in a spectacular twirl.

There, a sudden emergence of a flower-cloth manufactured bird rose up and had her land along it, allowing her to sail around the spectating crowd and those of the distant booths. From behind they could see Sherry, dressed in a black-red dress of a sleek v-cut design, maneuvering this manufactured doll with her magic with poise and grace. Twisting around, she unraveled her creation into a slew of ribbons and flowers that rained across the crowd, one of which landed squarely on Wendy's head, much to her giggling surprise as Alexandria was caught with a swirling grasp of Lyon.

Drums were sounded in accompaniment, bringing a new tempo as the three began to dance in and around each other, sometimes locking arms with one another or dancing in tight choreography. Wendy, from this elevation could see Jura, dressed in his normal attire, banging drums with his bare hands with a small smile on his face while giving it all his gusto. Toby himself, wearing a skirt of leaves spun a hula-hoop in the background, moving with surprising grace as he swung his hips side to side before adding more hoops on his arms, showing off his dexterity as his own unique act. Yuka Suzuki himself had spiky blue hair wrapped in an exotic head-piece of cream color with black at the top, ornate robes wrapped around him as he danced in tandem with the others, showing his own dexterity to expertly maneuver with the expert dancer and enhance the performance.

Lastly, something came in that caught Wendy off guard.

A red haired girl spun around in perfect pirouettes, dressed in a one-piece flower dress of red and purple design with blossoms outlining the collar and cuffs of the sleeves. A tiara of flowers rested over her crown, her shoulder-length hair swaying as she banged her own tambourine, twisting around on her heels before being uplifted up by both Lyon and Sherry, having her stand shoulder to shoulder with the finishing spin of Alexandria. With Toby and Yuka sliding on their knees to wave their arms presenting to them, the act finally came to a close, and they held their sweating but very broad smiles.

As the crowd clapped and cheered, Wendy found her own smile broaden. Her eyes met Sherria's, and she could instantly see her white teeth brighten up with recognition. The first smile she saw when her whole world collapsed; her first comfort when she was weeping with grief, was now here.

Waving to her and the others of Lamia Scale, Wendy felt something bursting from her chest, that Charle could only shake her head at.

She was, without a doubt in this moment, truly overjoyed.

* * *

After the show had ended for the day, the most of the guild was introduced to Lamia Scale and their clientele. The dancer was Alexandria Quorra, a famous performer who was accompanied by a number of other extravagant and talented people touring across Ishgar. None of them were part of the same group before, but they were all friends due to the circles they traveled. When they heard of the upcoming husband selection coming up in Desierto, they got an invitation to be a part of the selection climax itself when the queen has made her choice in person in front of many esteemed guests.

"It's so good to see you!" Sherria spoke gleefully, hugging Wendy as soon as she was free from the adoring fans. Wendy returned it affectionately, embracing the young girl that meant a great deal to her. Releasing her after what felt like an eternal moment, she looked up with sparkling eyes that complemented her bright smile. "I didn't think you'd be here so quickly!"

"You knew I was coming?" Wendy asked with her smile intact, though curious all the same.

"Through love, we'd knew you'd be here-"

"The candidates were all broadcasted in detail across the capital," Yuka answered, cutting off Sherry in the middle of her flowery speech.

Consequently, the taller woman turned around and began punching at the man, his Wave magic forming in front of his face stoically with his hands still in his pockets. The large eyebrow man withdrew a paper, showing Max's face of one of many profiles designating their importance, origin and known bio to their age, eye and hair color, weight, and even blood type.

"How did they get all of this information...?"

"It's not that private of knowledge," Doranbolt smoothly inserted, the man reluctantly holding a number of shopping bags under his arms while Bobbie smiled contentedly next to him. Sighing, he sideglanced over to Charle knowingly as he added. "The Council keeps documentation of all Legal Mages. Clients looking for prospective mages are allowed this information so if they can contractually ask for someone, like the Kingdom of Fiore has, they know who everyone is before they even meet face to face."

"Max Alors, was it?" Lyon inquired, finding himself bereft of a shirt at random, as he scratched his head with a look of contemplation on his face. "Strange, I don't seem to recall him from my few times interacting with the guild. Why wasn't he with the others for our mission to defeat Oracion Seis if he's so capable?"

"The poor man doubts his own abilities, so its likely he didn't volunteer when everyone else did at the time," Charle surmised with a sage nod; followed up with a oblong stare at the shirtless man. "Also, where did your clothes go?!"

"This keeps happening...I don't know why..."

"It's really weird, man," Toby remarked, spinning hula-hoops on both arms while balancing a third on his dog-like nose.

"I don't think you should be commenting on oddity, Toby," Sherry remarked with a leering stare.

"Regardless, Max may be in for a rough time," Lyon noted, looking over to Macao and Wakaba as they conversed with Jura not too far away. "From what I heard, there's some capable people who were chosen as potential Prince Consorts. Some hail from prestigious bloodlines, or have their own noble heritage to reinforce their potential as the best one to be husband to the queen."

"He'll do it, I know he will!" Wendy raised her fists and smiled with confidence. "I believe in him."

Smiling back down at her, Lyon nodded with agreement.

"Just trying to stay realistic. You never know what you might run into-"

His voice stopped, his eyes trailing over to a pointed hat that he never saw before. Tracing down was beautiful silky hair of pure teal that moistly rivuletted in the air, a black cloak wrapped around the front and down to a v-cut skirt with light colored stockings connected to high heel boots of the most slender legs possible. With a line of water bottles wrapped peculiarly around a toned abdomen, a curved torso laced up to reveal beads of sweat crawling down the neck and around collarbones from the bare shoulders that the cloak was relaxed around. Chugging a bottle of water, the delicate effeminate figure wiped a hand over the brow, and looked back with sudden realization he was being ogled.

"What?" Robyn asked, a sly smile working its way across his face. "You like what you see?"

"You're beautiful," Lyon spoke aloud, immediately taking Robyn off guard. Other Fairy Tail mages nodded and muttered, "Yes, that's true," and "That isn't news to us,". To Doranbolt and Wendy's surprise, he walked over to the cherub-faced Slayer and bent down, grasping a hand of his hand placing both of his above and below. With a singing whistle of mist, he uncovered them, revealing a fluttering bird of ice that danced over his palm and then flew above and around the two before resting on Lyon's shoulder.

"Why not we spend time together, if you're looking for company?" He proposed, bringing a blush over Robyn's face and sparkles in his eyes.

Then, he smiled cheekily, and turned around towards the others as he walked off with Lyon, arm-in-arm, waving back to them, "I'll see ya around guys! I got a date now!"

"Does...Lyon know-"

"Likely not," Charle finished for Wendy, patting the girl on the shoulder as she hunched over with a resigned expression.

"If Max was here, he might've spoiled that for him. Still, at least he's happy for now."

"Hey, why not come shopping with me?" Sherria proffered, tugging at Wendy's skirt as she held up a fat frog-wallet full to burst with money. "I got paid a lot for being part of the finishing act! Let's go find some things for us to get and do!"

Smiling back down at her, she took the red haired girl by the hand and nodded with acceptance. Right now wasn't the time to worry about appearances or what was essential. For now, it was time to enjoy herself. Looking chastely back up at the palace, she inwardly sent her encouraging thoughts to Max, and hoped he was managing on his own knowing Fairy Tail was still behind him in spirit.

And with that, she skipped along happily with the younger girl, aiming to have the time of her life in Paradisio!

* * *

**A/N: **_Hey, everyone, LastationLover5000 here. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I apologise for the delay in getting it out. As my audience, it is my duty to inform you that my co-author, Demod20, will no longer be a part of this project. This is the last chapter in the story penned by him — at least until we reach a future chapter he wrote far in advance — and as such, this will be a solo project from here on out. Demod20 has encountered some personal issues that he needs to handle, and as such, won't be able to work on this project with me while he focuses on what he needs to get done. This is a change for the foreseeable future, and it affects both this story and Dragon Ball: The Heart of Adventurers. This was supposed to be a much longer chapter, covering his half, and mine. However, this sudden upheaval has made focusing on writing harder than you might expect, and as such, I cut this chapter short to allow for you all to have a chapter to read. This will also get my audience used to a new reality: shorter chapters. When Demod and I both worked on the chapters, we could afford to make fairly lengthy ones. With just myself, working on three fanfics now, solo, and a novel, the chapters will not be as lengthy. And if I have to be honest, I don't have a huge amount of faith in myself; I still have the bulk of our plans for everything up to the return of Team Tenrō, but Demod was the bigger brain behind all of this. Regardless, I will work hard to deliver you guys a promising fanfic, just, please forgive the coming lapse in quality that you're going to see. I'll see you all as soon as I can update the next chapter, which hopefully won't be too much longer! Thank you all for your continued reading!_


	17. The Candidates

**Chapter 17 - The Candidates  
Written by LastationLover5000  
Original Story Concept by LastationLover5000 and Demod20**

* * *

Max felt alone. Despite being accompanied by Bashiff and Kaseem, being led away from his friends and towards and entirely unknown situation left him only feeling hollow. The trio walked in silence, Bashiff's friendly and welcoming energy being the only thing to counter the dour mood that Kaseem emanated at almost every turn. Max could not have wondered precisely why they sent two people so opposite each other to act as the escorts of not only the Fairy Tail guild, but one of the candidates. Max could only assume it was simply because everything was as it appeared: Bashiff just was a people person, capable of getting along with anyone, and Kaseem was...dangerous was a word Max applied to the man lightly. His display in the desert showed that he was indeed terrifying, and Max realised he and his guild could not have been given a better bodyguard.

Yet he didn't feel safe in the slightest. Max barely took in the sights as he passed them by; what should have been an intricate, gilded path, hewn from only the rarest stone found in Desierto blended together in his eyes as the Fairy Tail mage tried to keep pace with Bashiff and Kaseem, neither of whom seemed to consider slowing down for him to be necessary. Thus, Max attempted to keep in stride. The palace had seemed so close at first, yet Max soon realised this was only due to the palace's truly domineering size. It loomed over the bulk of Desierto, and the Sandstorm Mage could only imagine the view at the highest of the towers. The gold-paved road they took let them travel upwards, scaling the raised-mountain on which the palace rested. Being led by Kaseem and Bashiff made the journey feel much shorter than it seemed, however, and it was not long before Max and his guides were face-to-face with the entrance of the palace.

"Welcome, Candidate, to the Gate of the Vermillion Bird," Bashiff labeled the door to Max, the overtones of pride unmistakable in his voice. At the look of confusion on Max's face, Bashiff faltered only slightly. "Do you not recognise the significance of the name? I was so sure simply the magnificence of the door and the splendor of its name would mean it wouldn't warrant explanation."

"I've never heard of a Vermillion Bird," admitted Max sheepishly. "Is it important here?"

"The Vermillion Bird, the Azure Dragon, the White Tiger, and the Black Tortoise," interjected Kaseem quietly. "The Four Auspicious Beasts. Each figure are well known throughout this region, and are often used to symbolise the four cardinal directions, in addition to varying attributes associated only with them. We're aware they're prominent in the Far East as well, and truth be told, we're not sure where the tales originated."

"Well spoken, Kaseem," Bashiff crowed boisterously. "Each of the entrances to Her Majesty's castle is marked by one of the Four Symbols. The Gate of the Vermillion Bird is only ever used by the guests of Her Majesty herself; the bird symbolises rebirth, the recreation of oneself through a trial by fire. Those who meet her Majesty indeed never the same again. It is a religious experience, even moreso for the one she takes to rule by her side. Once you step through this gate, Candidate Max, your life will be transformed. That is what the Gate of the Vermillion Bird represents."

"What about the other three?" asked Max curiously.

"The other three do not concern you," replied Kaseem. "Prove yourself worthy, and you will find out when you take your place at her Majesty's side. If not, then our secrets are best not left with a foreigner."

Max swallowed the lump sitting in his throat. Even if he ignored Kaseem's less-than-kind words, the man still found that all of this merely added to his feeling of ever-mounting pressure. He wasn't anything special; just a Mage from Fairy Tail. He wasn't even one of the stars, that role belonged to his late friends from Tenrō Island. All of this talk of rebirth, royalty, and life-changing decisions...as far as he'd come, all the way to Desierto, now standing on the very doorstep to the Palace of Paradisio itself...was it too late to turn back? Couldn't he just bolt now? Run back to the Guild and pretend he'd never gotten the letter?

_The Guild..._ Max suddenly felt cold. No one else in his Guild was the kind of person who would run from this. It's just a selection ceremony, right? The entirety of Fairy Tail faced far worse than this before. _Besides, Natsu and the Master wouldn't hesitate to give me a piece of their mind if they heard I ran away from something like this. Yeah, that's right... _His eyes brimming with new fire, Max exhaled slowly. "I'm ready, Bashiff."

"I like that look!" Bashiff grinned widely. "You looked like you didn't quite know what to do with yourself when you were on board our airship, Candidate Max. But that's a different look entirely! Tell me, before I open these gates...what changed your mind?"

"My friends," replied Max simply. "That's just the way we do it at Fairy Tail."

Without waiting to be given a cute, Max placed both his hands on the double doors of the Gate of the Vermillion Bird, and gave it a hearty push. With his own two hands, he'd open the door to his own future. When Max walked through the doors, he progressed through on his own. Bashiff and Kaseem watched the doors closing, each with a different look on their face.

"I had no confidence in that young man," Bashiff said gruffly. "Yet now, I can't help but hope he doesn't go home too dispirited."

"What becomes of him is no concern to us now," replied Kaseem gravely. _This entire procession is but a formality anyway. Let the foreigner try his best._

* * *

Through the receding light of the closing double doors, Max was given a view of a brilliant hallway, lined with statues of a bird, wings spread as it preparing for flight. The door closed with a surprisingly soft thudding noise, plunging Max into a darkness so complete he couldn't see his hand in front of his own face. His eyes swiveled about the room, desperately trying to adjust to the darkness, yet he need not have tried: the very moment he prepared to take a step, the entire hallway seemed to explode. The light which greeted his eyes was blinding, the young man finding the need to cover them before peering through squinted lids into the hallway.

Each and every single statue — of which there'd been more than he could have anticipated even on his first look — were gushing flames from the eyes and beaks of the Vermillion Bird. So many were ablaze, and so bright was their light that Max might have mistaken the hallway for being lot by some kind of Lacrima. Despite being within this hallway, surrounded by torches, he felt no heat, not a hint of perspiration.

_They sure know how to give a greeting_, thought the Sandstorm mage, nervously chuckling in spite of himself. _I guess I wont be getting an escort from this point...so I should walk on?_

As if answering his thoughts, his own legs moved. Max didn't know if he'd consciously made the choice or was simply giving in to the urge not to remain there alone, and plodded through the hall. Lit by the flaming birds, Max could see everything; the smooth, marble walls, the detail in each feather...and the otherwise wasted space. Was there a point to a hall this pointlessly long? He found himself wondering that, even as he walked. Left with nothing but silence and his thoughts, Max couldn't help but believe this was part of the Candidate test in some way.

Max felt he was reaching the end of the hall once he saw an obvious doorway, obscured by shadows. The frame was built in a way where the light of the Vermillion Bird's statues didn't penetrate it. Approaching the doorway with caution, the Fairy Tail mage nearly leapt back in shock when the shadows took form, manifesting in the shape of a woman. Her skin was not quite as dark as the others he had seen since arriving in the country of Desierto, yet it was clear it had once been pale and she was merely been deprived of light, giving it more of an olive tone. Her eyes were piercing amethyst, and she wore clothes which were clearly meant to be easy to move in but revealed more of her well-endowed chest and shapely rear than was wise.

"Um..." Max, caught off guard by both her sudden appearance and beauty, found himself at a loss for words.

"Greetings, foreign candidate," the woman spoke in a direct tone, her eyes never breaking contact with Max's. "My name is Kuon. I will proceed with the final qualifications examination."

"E-Examination?" Max stammered, this being the first he'd heard of it. Had he not been still recovering from shock, Max may have taken notice that her name too, was odd in these lands. "W-Wasn't I already chosen as a candidate?"

'"That is correct, Max Alors," Kuon said, using Max's name despite never having been introduced to it. "But that is a general selection without pre-screening. This qualification examination will weed out those unfit to stand by Her Majesty's side by weighing their very hearts." She reached into the shadows behind her, pulling out an ornate set of beautiful golden scales. "This test, however, is fatal should one prove to fail. I give you a final chance, Max Alors. If you are not prepared to lay down your own life and weigh it against your heart for the sake of your future, then take your leave."

Was he willing to potentially sacrifice his life for the sake of hooking up with a woman he didn't know? Max stared at Kuon incredulously. That wasn't a question he could simply answer when prompted.

"You do not have the luxury of time, Max Alors," Kuon said curtly. "You are the last candidate we are expecting; make your decision or begone from these walls."

"I..." Max felt the words struggle to come out. "No way in Hell am I ready for something like that! But at the same time...it would make my Guild look bad if we came all the way here just for me to run because of a little setback. So go ahead; weigh my heart or whatever, and I'll show you I'm worth passing through those doors."

"You would risk your life for reputation, then?"

Max shook his head. "That's not what this is. I'm just not the type who turned back after I've made a decision. You'll find my family is full of people like that — stubborn as a bar of metal."

"Hm," something flickered behind Kuon's eyes. "Very well. I will acknowledge your resolve...and weigh your heart." Kuon raised the scales to be level with Max's chest, and placed her free hand atop the glittering ornament. Words began to spill from her mouth, an incantation spoken in a hushed tone, its very words filling the cramped hall with the air of magic.

"_Right of mistrust. Left of honesty. A soul muddled in uncertainty, the centre of a human heart brings clarity to all. Hesitation. Resolve. Into the jaws of hell, the screams of the sinners are fed." _

The scales began to emit a strange, flowing black mass. This mass dripped from the gilded appliance like liquid, slipping onto Kuon's hand. Max watched the scales, horrified, as the dark mass melded into Kuon's hand and arm. Formerly pale and beautiful, it took on a deadened appearance, almost akin to petrified wood.

"If you wish to grit your teeth, I would not think less of you," she said cryptically. Before Max could so much as raise a question, he felt it before he saw it; Kuon's arm ripping right into his chest, gripping something within it, and tearing it out. Pain seared through his body, nerves aflame, mouth screaming. As he fell to his knee, blood splattered onto the torch-lit ground, and before Max's eyes, Kuon lifted what was unmistakably a heart to eye-level. Connected by a series of threads — no, they were veins — he was left with no realisation other than this woman had ripped his heart right out yet he continued to breathe.

As quickly as this realization had come, however, it faded. The pain numbed, ebbing to nothing, and the blood he swore painted the floor and coated his chin was gone. In Kuon's hand was a shadowy mass in the shape of a heart, linked to his body by threads of equal darkness.

"The vision of death," Kuon explained to a bewildered Max. The man steadied himself to his feet just as Kuon began to place the effigy heart onto the scale. Adjacent on the other scale was, to Max's surprise, a feather that had not been there before. "Now, the weighing will commence." The shade-constructed duplicate rested gently on the scale. Moments of silence followed, with Max unsure what to expect, and Kuon unwilling to divulge. Her hand, restored to its pristine look, hovered gently over the scales, which she held remarkably steadily in her other hand. The magic which filled the area did not fade, and instead seemed to only intensify.

Then, a movement. The feather began to rise slightly, attracting the attention of Kuon, concern of Max...and simultaneously occurring as the shadows behind Kuon shifting ominously. Max felt his chest tighten.

"I see..." muttered Kuon. "A grudge...deep-seated resentment..." as she muttered these words, the scale began to average itself out again, the feather and heart level with each other. "Yet these are overshadowed...by compassion...a desire to do what is right...a sense of honour…ah...but insecurities weigh it down...and yet..." Her mutterings became ever faster, with Max unable to discern just what she was saying. Finally...the heart duplicate began to rise on it scale, above the feather. The tightening faded.

"Very well," said Kuon stiffly. "You are no saint, Max Alors, but we do not expect to find one among outsiders. Regardless, just barely, the feather outweighs your heart. There is much on your mind...but you are eligible to pass."

"I still don't get it," mumbled a confused Max, who watched as the fake heart vanished, and any sense of unease along with it. His chest felt free. "What was the point of this? What happened if I failed?"

"The point," she replied curtly, "is that the candidates are traditional chosen from all over the world. To us, to our people, the Queen is revered above all. She is not on the same level as mere mortals, and to allow those with tainted, wicked hearts to be in her presence would be a failure on our part." Reaching behind her into the shadows, Kuon tucked the scales away. "As for what would have happened if you failed..."

She let her own words trail off. No, in fact, theh were drown out entirely by a sudden cacophony; a mixture of growls, screams, pleas, and other sounds filled the hall. Several of them, Max lacked the ability to even describe, he'd never heard them on Earth. The shadows behind Kuon began to morph, sprouting vivid eyes, gleaming teeth, all connected to the head of a reptile...and this vanished as quickly as it had come, seeping into her own shadow. A door was revealed, resplendent in its shape, and sporting the relief of the Vermillion Bird. "You would have been fed to the shadows, Max Alors."

"I—" Max struggled with his throat to find vocabulary he could throw at the woman, who was waking past him now. "Why go to such lengths? Why murder—?"

"You agreed," replied Kuon simply. "Everyone person consumed by Amru forged a contract with the scales when they agreed to lay down their life. It was their own choice; such a thing is hardly anymore murder than what you foreigners consider a duel to the death."

"But why–"_  
_

"Our Queen is divine," Kuon turned to face him now, her amethyst eyes searing. "The feather with which your heart was weighed against, and found lighter, came from the body of our Queen's venerable ancestor, the deity who created our country and ruled it before she left it in the hands of her daughter, the very first Queen." She sighed. "Candidate Max Alors, if you wish to make it farther through the trials you will face, please understand this firstly: Her Majesty above all, and Her Majesty's word is law. It would do you well to remember that." Parting on these words, Kuon's body slipped into the nearest shadow created by the dancing firelight, leaving a stunned and silent Max in the hallway.

_What is this nation?_ Max wondered. _A nation that reveres its leader to the point that they're revered as a deity?_ He frowned, placing a thumb and forefinger to his chin. _I think...now I have to win. And figure out why. I'll have to let Wendy, Charle, and Doranbolt know later, if I can..._

Forcing these thoughts to retire to the back of his mind, Max placed both hands on the double doors, and pushed. His eyes flooded once again with light, the young Sandstorm Mage squinting until his eyes adjusted. And what a sight he saw once they had. The room the hallway had led him to was vast, with a domed ceiling, and seeming to have been constructed from marble. Tables, huge and imposing, took up the bulk of the space in the room. Where a traditional castle may have been lit by candles or torches, which Max expected from the hall he'd just passed through, the light of this room was oddly artificial. It took mere moments to see why; floating high above them, resting just under the ceiling, was a giant Lacrima. It emitted a powerful flow, erasing the shadow from nearly everything. Glancing around, Max was alarmed to see just how many people he had to contend with. He reckoned it was over a hundred, and they were all standing patiently, quietly, within this Great Hall.

Within this crowd of faces, Max found himself focusing on two individuals. He couldn't pin why precisely, beyond the fact that they managed to stand out in every respect. In a crowd of people, these two congregated together, yet their body language didn't imply that they knew each other. No, Max believed it was the same feeling that he was getting from them now; each of these individuals was going to be someone to focus on, though he'd hardly had a rival in his life. Thus, Max himself began to focus on these two, as if he was hoping to gain some sort of hidden knowledge by simply analysing them.

The first was a young man, perhaps only a few years older than Max. If "handsome" existed in a human form, this man was certainly it; he possessed features many women would stampede over their husbands for, and many men would turn green with envy to possess for himself. His eyes were a vivid, sky-blue, his hair blonde, worn as a reverse-mullet in a way which barely covered his eyes, and his nose, while smaller than average, complimented the sculpted face rather than detracted from it. He wore clothes that someone like Max would have needed to spend several year's of quest earnings simply to make a down payment on. The man wore a crimson suit jacket with flowing trails, over a pristine white dress shirt, with similarly matching pants, and gleaming black shoes. Protruding from within the jacket were the multiple ruffles of his shirt, and Max noticed the cuffs of his shirtsleeves were similarly ruffled. The Fairy Tail mage couldn't tell if the attire was made of satin, velvet, or silk, but he knew it was some similarly expensive material.

Another of the standout candidates for Prince Consort was a familiar yet unique sight for Max. A sheen of radiant golden hair combed to the side of an angular but soft face of fair complexion, with the telltale sign of his face being an exposed pointed ear. With his right eye darting away from any and all eye contact, Max felt a draw of pity for the elf. Despite him wearing regal robes of bright yellow outlined black silk, one could easily see his indecisive mannerisms as he paced in circles around a small proximity in the vastly populated room.

The most significant of the assembled candidates for Prince Consort however leaned against the wall next to the entrance of the vast room. It almost escaped his notice from the shadows cast around the Vermilion Gate but the gleam of angular white steel shimmered even in the darkness. Remaining around a height a head taller than Max, the helmet poised with a series of small slits over the visor that concealed the figure's face save for a pair of white orbs that stared stoically that he caught sight of. Standing upright as if on cue, the pale snow cape unfurled off the wall and metal heels clicked against the ground as Max tensed in the knight's approach.

"So the last finally appears," It spoke, a voice deep and metallic from the echo of the impressive armor. "You look familiar. You aren't per chance, a Mage?"

_How could I not have noticed them?_ Max wondered. This person exuded an aura different from the rest; not merely power, though be supposed there was that. No, Max felt a strong resolve from this man, stronger even than his, which had just been tested. _Though I suppose everyone who passed that horrifying test was going to be set on coming through here..._ Clearing his throat, Max nodded. "Yeah, I'm a Mage of the Fairy Tail guild. My name is Max Alors."

"Max Alors," the deep voice seemed to mull the name over. "You have my greetings. You may refer to me as many do – Der Weiß Ritter."

"Der...Weiss...Ritter?" Max pronounced the title with difficulty. "That can't be your name, can it?"

"It is a title yes," replied the knight slowly. "In the domain I have from, someone of my rank is only allowed to divulge their name to brothers-in-arms. Until then, we are to be known by the titles we earn through our deeds — you have one such title as well, do you not? Hero of Fiore?"

Whispers immediately began to carry outwards from where Max and the Knight were speaking. It was evident that people had been listening in — more eyes had been on Max than he thought, and the Knight had also garnered interest.

"Der Weiß Ritter?!"

"Isn't he the knight who slew a hundred demons in a single stroke?"

"No, he fended off three hundred over the course of two nights!"

"Did they say one of the Heroes of Fiore?"

"They saved their country's capital, right?"

"Which one is it?"

"It would seem our reputations precede us," the Knight said calmly.

"I-I'm not much," replied Max, flushing. "Besides, the heavy lifting was done by someone else. I just happened to be there, helping."

"Modest as well as famous."

It wasn't the Knight which spoke again, but the blonde man in fine clothes, who seemed to have finally taken notice of Max and his conversation partner. "Aren't you an interesting one then, little Fiore mage?"

"S-Should you really be speaking to him like that?" The demure young elf seemed to have worked up the courage to speak as well, though he was obviously nervous just interacting with them. "He was instrumental in s-stopping an assault on the Fiore throne."

"I-I told you, it wasn't that much," insisted Max.

"That sounds to me more like you're a coward," replied the blonde man snidely. "Or perhaps you simply paid good money for the accolades you've received? You don't look the rich type but you know what they say about looks being deceiving." His eyes glinted ominously, his mouth curved into a sneer. "Let me make this clear, 'Hero of Fiore.' I, Octavius Selfridges, will be the one who secures victory and the Queen's hand!" Belting out laughter, the man turned and walked away, not even giving Max the dignity of a response.

Max watched him go, vein pulsating in his head, biting back the urge to shout after him in this Hall of crowded people.

"I-I'm sorry," uttered the elf suddenly. "That man is a noble from the Pergrande Kingdom...and he's got a h-habit of acting out like that." Clearing his throat, he still avoided direct eye contact. "I'm E-Elidyr Oladove, and I'm from Seven."

"Max Alors."

"Der Weiß Ritter."

After introductions, Max found himself mulling over Octavius' attitude. "How did he pass through the weighing...?"

"They are not checking for sainthood," replied the Knight simply. "Traits such as arrogance and pride can be found even in the noblest of souls, and thus it stands to reason they were not checking for such things."

"Then what...?"

"More than likely, it was a test to see who would bring their Queen harm," continued the Knight. "Qualities such as hatred, jealousy, the capacity for forgiveness and mercy, were most likely considered more important than how highly one holds themselves in their own heads."

Remembering what she had said about the grudges in his heart – resentment towards his parents – Max had to agree the Knight may have had a point. Still, the idea that someone as irritating as Octavius could win only made Max irritated, and, he had to admit, more motivated to win.

"May the goddess of victory side with the most well suited, Max Alors," the Knight said, by means of a farewell. He stepped back, and turned his attention to the end of the Great Hall. Max, taken aback by the sudden and abrupt end to the conversation, followed the gaze of the Knight that everyone was now parroting. All noise died down, and the lacrima dimmed completely, before reigniting in a brilliant spotlight that shone down on a single man.

He stood out in a way no one else from this land did. His skin and braided hair were both pale as snow, and his eyes were narrowed and amethyst in hue. He wore glittering robes of silver and green, and from beneath them, an arm gripped a golden staff. He carried himself with importance, and when he spoke, his deep voice rang clear above the crowd.

"My humblest greetings, potential candidates of our venerable Queen," He spoke curtly, and his smile was equally short. "My name is Ja'far."

"A man possessed of fine features and regal attire," murmured the Knight. "If I did not know better, I would almost believe he himself was King. This Ja'far is certainly highly ranked, if nothing else."

The Sandstorm Mage found himself in agreement. Ja'far had a certain air about himself that one could find in royalty or noble dignitaries. He even commanded the attention of the entire room simply by walking in. _Something about him looks weirdly familiar...but I haven't met him before...right?_ Max mused, intently analysing Ja'far.

"First, allow me to offer my sincerest gratitude to those of you who accepted our summons," Ja'far said, extending his arms out to the individuals in the room. "This process of selecting a potential candidate to marry our Majesty is a holy tradition dating back generations, to the very founding of our great nation." His gem-like eyes surveyed the room, settling on where Max and the Knight stood. These eyes only served to make Max more certain he'd met the man before, and to make him feel uncomfortable, as if they could see right through him. "In older times, those of less distinguished reputations and even darker hearts would vie for the hands of our Queen, and her descendants, and thus we created the test which each of you had to overcome, all for the sake of proving yourself worthy to take your place at the side of divinity.

But now...perhaps you have noticed, there are still quite a large number of you," Ja'far's voice didn't give away any surprise, implying that a large turnout for this event happened frequently. In fact, Max noted, despite the flowery words, the man sounded almost businesslike. "But rest assured, your lives are no longer in danger; the lot of you candidates have been proven, on some level, to be suited what is coming." Holding up his hand, Ja'far showed off three pale fingers for the room at large to see under the spotlight. "Three tasks. We will have three tasks for you, and these three tasks will weed out all but the most competent of you. By the end of it all, we should have narrowed down precisely who we think is most worthy, but should there be multiple candidates of note...well, how such a situation will be handled shall be decided when the time comes."

The hush which had accompanied Ja'far's entry was abruptly shattered, as mutterings arose within the crowd of candidates. Each of them was a prominent figure in the land or settlement from which they haled, so they were all wondering just what test could possibly weed them out — certainly they were already worthy, what was with the rest of the riffraff here? Only Max, the Knight, and Elidyr were silent, though all for different reasons. Elidyr simply could not speak. The Knight chose to remain silent, as an idle tongue was best when surrounded by foes. Max, however, kept quiet as his brain worked, wondering what three tasks would have to be if they were for the sake of marrying a Divine Queen?

"I believe you will find your rooms have been prepared," said Ja'far, his voice carrying smoothly over the din as if no one was speaking at all. "For those of you who brought guests, they will be afforded lodgings elsewhere, as all candidates will take up room and board here, within the castle. The tasks will begin in the morning, the day after tomorrow, giving you all plenty of time to rest and prepare yourselves. Please do not disappoint us, candidates. The Queen's hand is not something to be taken lightly."

The room brightened to its full splendor again, as Ja'far turned and walked from the room. Max's eye followed the swish of his robes, and the young Fairy Tail mage could do nothing to stop the feeling of trepidation edging itself into his stomach again.

_One day of rest...and then three unknown tasks to deal with. What could they even be?_

* * *

**A/N: **_Hello hello, everyone! First, let me start by apologising for the immense gap between updates. This is the first chapter I've had to write solo for the story, and, coupled with trying to find my motivation again, it made for a very bitter brew that honestly I can't say was too enjoyable. But regardless, I took everything step by step and wrote this chapter as best I could, even with my co-author absent. I know you all were used to very well paced updates, but right now, as it is just me, and I am working on three stories alone, I will do the best I can with what I've got, even if that slows the updating process down for each of them. To the fans of the Heart of Adventurers and the Erased Chronicles, those will receive their updates next, then I will circle back around to the Sky Maiden and write its next chapter. This was a pretty interesting chapter to write; Desierto is a country with...pretty much nothing known about it. My co-author and I are borrowing from multiple "desert cultures" (can I say that? So many people get offended by anything nowadays) from middle-eastern cultures to Egypt itself. The latter is definitely reflected in the "weighing of the hearts" test I concocted for Max to endure. All in all, this chapter definitely served the purpose we wanted it to in the end, and I hope you all enjoy the future chapters to come._


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